Vanyaland https://vanyaland.com/ The proven voice in music since 2013 Fri, 12 Dec 2025 19:09:56 +0000 en-US hourly 1 https://wordpress.org/?v=6.8.3 https://redefined.s3.us-east-2.amazonaws.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/05/31135224/cropped-V-SOCIAL-2023-32x32.png Vanyaland https://vanyaland.com/ 32 32 Year in ReView: Vanyaland’s favorite films of 2025 https://vanyaland.com/2025/12/12/year-in-review-vanyalands-favorite-films-of-2025/ Fri, 12 Dec 2025 18:53:26 +0000 https://vanyaland.com/?p=10042813 If I had to pick one word to describe 2025 — just in general, not at the movies — it’d be “uncertain.” Not “ambiguous” or an equivalent synonym, given that there’s plenty of clearly awful things going on each day, but the kind of uncertainty that pairs well with a sense of foreboding dread. We’re stuck in a bleak comedy of fatal errors, with the sentiment of the moment ultimately summed up accurately by “Well, that’d be funny if it […]

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]]> Snowgaze Fest returns to Deep Cuts for a second year https://vanyaland.com/2025/12/12/snowgaze-fest-returns-to-deep-cuts-for-a-second-year/ Fri, 12 Dec 2025 15:02:51 +0000 https://vanyaland.com/?p=10042809 Festival season ain’t over ’til the last distortion pedal switches off at Snowgaze Fest. The winter “celebration of shoegaze, dream-pop, and grunge,” which launched last December, returns to Deep Cuts next weekend for another two-day lineup of seasonally-appropriate shoegaze, et al. The festivities launch next Friday (December 19) with performances from Greater Boston groups Exit 18, Tysk Tysk Task (pictured above), and Literally/Nobody, plus Portland, Maine’s Little Oso. On Saturday (December 20), Massachusetts bands Clifford and The Dreamtoday will be […]

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]]> Year in ReView: Nick Minieri showcases a scene with ‘HOMETOWN’ 2025 https://vanyaland.com/2025/12/12/year-in-review-nick-minieri-showcases-a-scene-with-hometown-2025/ Fri, 12 Dec 2025 09:18:23 +0000 https://vanyaland.com/?p=10042803 Two things hit every December that remind us that our Boston music scene is far more diverse, varied, and prolific than whatever cliques and circles we currently roll with. One is the Boston Music Awards, arriving next week; and the other is Nick Minieri’s annual HOMETOWN mix, a deep-dive playlist and artist showcase from the veteran DJ, MC, and beat maker that offers up the latest n’ greatest to emerge out of New England in the past year. As we […]

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]]> Year in ReView: Vanyaland’s favorite film screen performances of 2025 https://vanyaland.com/2025/12/11/year-in-review-our-favorite-film-screen-performances-of-2025/ Thu, 11 Dec 2025 19:54:57 +0000 https://vanyaland.com/?p=10042798 If you’d like to know my thoughts on acting in movies, I’d point you to the scene from Moneyball in which Billy Beane tries to convince Scott Hatteberg to play first base. It is incredibly hard, though the compensation and fame and all of the other accoutrements go a long way to convince the average schlub that it’s easy as hell. Just imagine trying to do a monologue in which you have to run the gamut of emotions while not […]

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]]> Watch Milly Alcock take to space in the first trailer for ‘Supergirl’ https://vanyaland.com/2025/12/11/watch-milly-alcock-take-to-space-in-the-first-trailer-for-supergirl/ Thu, 11 Dec 2025 19:47:58 +0000 https://vanyaland.com/?p=10042800 Begun, the Avatar: Fire and Ash trailer deluge has. Get ready to see a shitload of new previews for 2026’s biggest releases over the next few days, as every single studio wants to get as many eyeballs as possible on their new features, given that the Avatar movies defy economic laws and make billions of dollars no matter what. There’s Spielberg’s new alien movie, Avengers: Doomsday, and more on the horizon, but the freshly acquired Warner Bros. decided to be […]

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]]> Year in ReView: Vanyaland’s 12 months of comedy faves in 2025 https://vanyaland.com/2025/12/11/year-in-review-vanyalands-12-months-of-comedy-faves-in-2025/ Thu, 11 Dec 2025 11:16:18 +0000 https://vanyaland.com/?p=10042789 Another year, another hell ride through a cultural landscape that devoured and reproduced at an alarming rate in 2025. Through all the “unprecedented times” that we’re all tired of living in, to the birth of “6-7!” (whatever the fuck that means), and everything in between, one constant that kept us afloat was the levity, and often times societal mirror check that comedy offered to the masses. With a little bit of everything for everyone, the world of stand-up was stretched, […]

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]]> Year in ReView: Vanyaland’s favorite 617 Q&A recommendations https://vanyaland.com/2025/12/11/year-in-review-vanyalands-favorite-617-qa-recommendations/ Thu, 11 Dec 2025 09:32:24 +0000 https://vanyaland.com/?p=10042795 One of the best parts of the 617 Q&A series (Six Questions; One Recommendation; Seven Somethings) is the one recommendation portion. Typically, if we haven’t flipped them already with our somewhat standard interview portion, it’s when the artist really comes alive and often provides some deeper insight into what they’re buzzing about off the stage as we ask them to tell us what they’ve been into recently that isn’t their current project. Over the years, we’ve had some doozies, from […]

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]]> Year in ReView: Vanyaland’s favorite homegrown songs of 2025 https://vanyaland.com/2025/12/10/year-in-review-vanyalands-favorite-homegrown-songs-of-2025/ Wed, 10 Dec 2025 14:54:47 +0000 https://vanyaland.com/?p=10042791 Well, that happened. 2025 was definitely a year, a whole 12-month rollout of the most absurd political and economic developments in recent memory. (A presidential administration accidentally texting out military strike plans? Kim Kardashian hawking faux-hair thongs? The tsunami of AI slop rapidly overtaking the equally-vapid Internet ragebait made by actual humans? How can a loving god permit such lunacy?) But the end of the year is always ripe for counting blessings, and as 2025 comes to a close, we’re […]

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]]> Nick Offerman sculpts a fine night of comedy at Chevalier Theatre https://vanyaland.com/2025/12/10/nick-offerman-sculpts-a-fine-night-of-comedy-at-chevalier-theatre/ Wed, 10 Dec 2025 13:45:57 +0000 https://vanyaland.com/?p=10042781 As the age-old question goes “How much Nick Offerman could a man offer if a man could offer a man named Nick?” The answer, apparently, is at least one show’s worth in Medford in 2026, and we’re delighted at that fact. As announced earlier this week, the accomplished actor, comedian, and resident romantic woodworking lumberjack will be making his way back to Medford’s Chevalier Theatre on April 18, as part of his expanding Big Woodchuck tour. In support of his […]

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]]> Mic’d Up: Stavros Halkias gets dreamy as hell in Boston https://vanyaland.com/2025/12/10/micd-up-stavros-halkias-gets-dreamy-as-hell-at-the-wilbur/ Wed, 10 Dec 2025 11:13:50 +0000 https://vanyaland.com/?p=10042757 The Ravens might be having a tough go of it this season, but fortunately the city of Baltimore is still exporting the good vibes via Stavros Halkias, so we here in Patriots territory shall remain content, at least throughout this weekend. Ready to port for a jam-packed weekend at The Wilbur consisting of four shows over two days starting on Friday (December 12), Stavvy’s Dreamboat tour makes its way to the city for a special run that will effectively bring […]

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