Subtlety can make or break a horror film. Small changes in sound and atmosphere can have ominous effects for the audience, and many of the scariest films in motion picture history, ranging from "The Shining" to "Psycho," have capitalized on this theory....

Everyone knows punk music is a limited genre. There are only so many three- or four-chord combinations that haven’t been shamelessly aped by 20 sound-alike bands from your old high school. This leaves little room for experimentation in the strictest...

Weekender was recently given the opportunity to speak with WGN weatherman, Tom Skilling . His perfect articulation and unbelievable diction justified his position as America’s highest paid on-air weatherman. Skilling will speak Saturday in the Montgomery...

As a huge sports fan, this weekend is essentially Steve Batterman’s Woodstock. Batterman, a freshman undecided major, can settle down to watch the third weekend of the Major League Baseball season, the NBA playoffs and the NFL draft all in a 48-hour...

It takes a special kind of person to continue riding horses after getting double-kicked and sent to the hospital by one - but Britta Eriksen is that type of equestrian. Eriksen, a sophomore French translation major, worked in the mountains of Wyoming...

You are going to read this article. You are going to like this article. You are going to read Sweeps every day. If you’re still reading this, then the Jedi mind trick must be working, and if that lead is the nerdiest thing you’ve ever read, then you...

NIU Libraries frequently ask students "to give a little bit" so they can expand their collections of more than a million volumes of material. The Friends of NIU Libraries, founded in 1983, is an association of people and alumni around the community, who...

Eating. Smoking. Drinking. A lack of sleep. Lots of frustration, a tad too much confusion and an overdose of anxiety. Sound familiar? Welcome to my life, and maybe yours as well. (No, I don’t need professional help - I’m just a little jaded at the...

Weekender talked to ‘yeah’ man Kevin Robinson of Viva Voce - one of indie rock’s best-kept secrets - about "The O.C.," Europe and the future. The band will play Sunday at 7th Street Space, 106 Seventh St. Weekender: Viva Voce has been featured on...

As the theater department’s production of "The Grapes of Wrath" concludes Sunday, a documentary-of-sorts on the play is blooming online. "Behind the Curtain," a documentary by 18 students in an advanced media class, is available for download at www.comm.niu.edu/curtain/....

Hosted by Sigma Gamma Rho Sorority, the 29th annual Greek Scene, which includes a step show and after-party, will take place at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Convocation Center. A step show is a performance of a combination of different beats, sounds and movements,...

To enjoy an action/adventure movie in these times, you’ll have to take a large step away from reality. For example, Dr. Indiana Jones, a nerdy college professor by day, spent his time off the job policing the world with his whip and hunting down ancient...