Top Picks: Johnnyswim's 'Live at Rockwood Music Hall,' the Citymapper app, and more
Humans and polar bears collide in the Smithsonian Channel's 'Polar Bear Town,' the movie 'Indignation' brings the Philip Roth novel of the same name to the big screen, and more top picks.
Courtesy of Smithsonian Channel
Love song
They’re beautiful. They’re in love. And, man, can they sing. They are Amanda Sudano and Abner Ramirez, and they call themselves Johnnyswim. They met in Nashville, Tenn., as songwriters and clicked artistically, vocally, and romantically. Their new live album, Live at Rockwood Music Hall, may be mostly acoustic, but it is potently electric, with the adoring crowd passionately hanging on every word and soaring harmony of this buzz-worthy duo. See a sample at http://bit.ly/johnnyswimvideo.
City guide
If you’re traveling and don’t know the city, the Citymapper app has everything you need to get around, from information on available bicycles, to a path to your destination that keeps you out of the rain, to transportation schedules. You’ll look as though you’ve lived there for years. Citymapper is free for iOS and Android and is available for cities all over the world.
Beyond the text
Those behind the podcast Footnoting History think the most interesting narratives are outside the main text, and the podcast goes beyond what you likely heard in class. A recent episode delved into the life and work of artist Michelangelo Merisi da Caravaggio. Find the installments at http://www.footnotinghistory.com.
College tale
The movie Indignation brings the Philip Roth novel of the same name to the big screen, with actor Logan Lerman starring as Marcus, a young Jewish man attending college in 1951. Sarah Gadon costars as a fellow student with whom Marcus becomes romantically involved. Monitor film critic Peter Rainer found that “Lerman is a go-getter actor playing a go-getter character. His presence alone can make his scenes propulsive,” and he called actor Tracy Letts, who portrays the college’s dean, “marvelous.”
Polar encounters
A new Smithsonian Channel series, Polar Bear Town, tells the story of Churchill, Manitoba, in northern Canada, through which more than 1,000 polar bears go every year once the ice of Hudson Bay has disappeared. What happens when these animals and humans come in such close contact? “Polar Bear Town” premières Nov. 16 at 8 p.m.