The Student News Site of Monta Vista High School

El Estoque

The Student News Site of Monta Vista High School

El Estoque

The Student News Site of Monta Vista High School

El Estoque

The Aurora album cover captures the chemistry between lead singers Daisy Jones and Billy Dunne.

Aurora is a manifestation of classic-rock nostalgia

Jami Lim March 14, 2023
The fictional ‘70s-esque album struggles to find its voice in the contemporary world
Dessert Detectives: Q Baking Corner

Dessert Detectives: Q Baking Corner

Sarah Liu and Lillian Wang March 8, 2023
Reviewing popular menu items based on quality and taste
“Heroes and Villains” album cover depicts Metro Boomin shaking an identical version of him engulfed in fire, a sentiment paying homage to rock group Pink Floyd.

Metro Boomin proves producer albums shouldn’t be disregarded in “Heroes and Villains”

Samika Bhatkar December 9, 2022
“Heroes and Villains” rich and dark ambiance perfectly pairs masterful production with feature artists
However, “SMITHEREENS” is a significant downgrade in the message Joji wants to send. Where there’s still slight inklings of the vocal and instrumental grandeur from his past projects, this record is much more akin to the unfinished patchworks of his beginnings, with heavy sounds hiding his raw vocals.

‘SMITHEREENS’ paints an incomplete canvas

Aditya Shukla November 20, 2022
Joji fails to bring artistic growth in his third studio record
Enola Holmes 2 is a mediocre sequel

Enola Holmes 2 is a mediocre sequel

Ananya Chaudhary November 12, 2022

The Netflix original, “Enola Holmes 2,” touches upon topics such as misogyny, poverty and corruption but fails to create a distinguishable plotline. Released Nov. 4, the story follows the protagonist...

Jennifer Walters trains to control her hulk abilities with her cousin, Bruce Banner

“She-Hulk: Attorney at Law” is a comedic mess

Minjae Kang October 15, 2022
Marvel’s seventh Disney+ series struggles to form a coherent plot
The album cover, a blurry image of Lanez contrasted with bright and dark colors, previews a multitude of emotions showcased throughout the album.

‘Sorry 4 What’ is an unapologetic failure

Chiran Arumugam and Sameer Maheshwari October 13, 2022

“I'm not tryna be here for a long time / Just, just a good, good time / I got a lot of s— weighin' on my mind” “Sorry 4 What” encompasses aspects of Lanez’s personal and musical growth in...

Jabari Smith cradles his love interest Meadow on the Entergalactic album cover.

“Entergalactic” is nothing out of the ordinary

Samika Bhatkar October 6, 2022
Despite its tranquil production and lyricism, “Entergalactic” fails to stand on its own
The album cover for “BORNPINK” has simple white background with pink fangs. This showcases the duality of the group with the contrast of the color pink and the fangs

“BORNPINK” merges the old with the new

Pranati Kotamraju September 30, 2022
Blackpink’s second studio album diverges from prior releases yet still maintains Blackpink’s essence
The “Traumazine” album cover features rapper Megan Thee Stallion expressing anger on the left and grief on the right — with these two emotions merging into her neutrality in the middle — alluding to how the album is rich with emotion and showcases three different sides of the rapper.

‘Traumazine’ is a reclaim of artistic identity

Aashi Venkat August 15, 2022
Megan Thee Stallion’s seventh album has the perfect balance of authenticity, fury and confidence
The movie poster for ‘Heartstopper’ features Nick Nelson and Charlie Spring looking into one another’s eyes as leaves flutter around them

“Heartstopper” is everything it was expected to be

Aashi Venkat April 27, 2022
The Netflix series is nothing more than a cute queer rom-com
Jake Gyllenhaal and  Abdul-Matteen play brothers Will and Danny Photo | Universal Pictures

“Ambulance” drives past its welcome

Nameek Chowdhury and Krish Dev April 25, 2022

“Ambulance,” directed by Michael Bay, places audiences in a two hour chase sequence of an ambulance zooming through downtown Los Angeles. The film, released in theaters on April 8, is just what you...

Load More Stories