ARTS The Michigan Daily n___ ', Wednesday, March 18, 1981 Page 7 justify anyone building their best musical hooks around lines like "Dirk wears white sox." BY THE END of Kings of the Wild Frontier, the whole affair is so em- barassing that it is virtually unlistenable. I dare anyone to sit through The Ants chanting "goklayeh- ho" to a pounding tribal beat without either cracking a patronizing smile or removing the record from the turntable in the midst of the song. On the first listening, I did the former; on each sub- sequent listening, I have done the lat- ter. . . earlier and earlier each time, as a matter of fact. -Mark Dighton The To urists Tourists - Luminous Basement (Epic). Aren't the Sixties dead? I mean, didn't that decade end about eleven years ago? I thought it was common knowledge. Well, apparently, someone forgot to tell the Tourists. They had an English hit with that Dusty Springfield pop standard, "I Only Want to Be with You," and actually got some airplay on this side of the Atlantic (well, at least in Detroit). And now, they give us Luminous Basement. Luminous Basement sounds good. My God, does it sound good. The production on this thing is so damn clean that you just want to scream. The music sounds as smooth as a new floor of linoleum, and has as much substance to it as a bowl of defrosted Kool Whip. But that's only the beginning. OF THE TWELVE' songs on this album (which runs an overly tedious 51:46). vocalist/guitarist Peet Coombes wrote ten. And the problem is that they all sound the same. Maybe a rhythm change here, maybe the lyrics change there. But it still sounds the same: like, innocuous (as opposed to obnoxious), refried, rehashed, and reconstituted 60s pop. It's fine to show where your musical roots go, but if you don't add to them, what's the point? The other two songs, "One Step Nearer the Edge," by keyboardist An- nie Lennox, and "Let's Take A Walk," by bassist Dave Stewart, are welcome changes from Coombes' repetition. "One Step" is pretty good it slows down from Coombes' pace, but it still has his recycled pop influence. 'Let's Take A Walk"-is, the only real pop song on the album. It clocks in at 2:50, just about the right length for pop songs (as op- posed to the others' average length of about four minutes). It has some in- spired guitar work, for a change, and even has a harmonica solo, a refreshingly human touch for this album. Oh, by the way, if you don't like ob- noxious (as opposed to innocuous) syn- thesizer and organ work, avoid this album. Annie Lennox virtually dominates this album with her keyboard work. But if you like that, and want to musically relive the 60s and put off facing up to the music of the 80s, by all means go out and buy Luminous Basement. If that's what you want, you'll certainly be getting your money's worth. -Lex Kuhne Sax sours Muffins ---"-- The Jags The Jags - 'No Tie Like a Present' (Island) - The Jags are best at their least pretentious. Their music is fodder ,or the sweet tooth, and I prefer my sugar unadulterated, thank you. But the Jags won't stick to thg staples. Sure, we get a couple of aban- dpned teenage fantasies in the hard- cock adolescent mode. "Mind Reader" and, "The Sound of G-O-O-D-B-Y-E" concern themselves with the usual teenage lament of not being able to find and maintain adequate female com- panionship. BUT WE ALSO get an album loaded down with too much of singer/guitarist 'Nick Watkinson's slurred poutings on a variety of Larger subjects that find themselves shrinking in the telling. Profundity is' not one of the Jags' vir- tues, and consequently we get such mind-expanding conclusions as "It's a tough world/I know it's getting tougher" in "Small Change." "Little Lloyd Wright" presents us with the sad saga of a snotty little rich kid who grows up to be a snotty rich old *m an, and thereby misses all the meaningful things in life. The poor bugger has everything he needs, you see, but he's such a twit. And so on. The album is weighted down with such dreck and, quite naturally, goes under. Watkinson comes across as a moony would-be artiste heavy on am- bition and light on intellect, a cute little guy who likes to trill his r's and sing on about another rock band on another voyage to stardom in "Another Town, Another Place." DESPITE THE LYRICAL millstone around its neck, the album struggles to survive musically and in fact is not a total loss. The music is potent power pop with hooks that rarely miss and never let go. Even the spritzier, less rambunctious tunes like "Fearing a Tornado" are appealingly affable in tone, and only "Another Time, Another Place" clunks along at the level of the *vocals. An instrumental, "Silver Birds," is a pleasant mild boomer that features a melodic guitar lead and pummeling drumming. It tries a bit too hard to be monumental, but it does sound a lot like silver birds. The only cut that succeeds on the level the Jags strain for, however, is "I Never Was a Beachboy." Booming into life rather bombastically, the song is a singable, infectious little ditty about all the pressures men go through to be macho and masculine. Watkinson ad- mits to never having been very tough and wishes the whole silly idea to the devil: "Stupid boys said I was queer/Will I ever get out of here?" This is the type of stuff the Jags would like to produce a whole album full of, but No Tie Like a Present isn't it. I like the sugar, but they haven't found much spice and aren't content to leave. the sugar alone. I wish they would. -Fred Schill Adam & Ants Adam and the Ants-'Kings of the Wild Frontier' (Epic) - Okay, so what's the big deal this time? Adam and the Ants' first American LP, Kings of the Wild Frontier, was preceded by almost unparalleled critical en- thusiasm and grapevine an- ticipation. . . or maybe it just seems unprecedented in retrospect given the disappointing work that now rests on my turntable. I've got to admit that I can see how the Ants could have so many hit singles in Britain. Fueled by two drummers and a wrap-around bass, their music is ex- ceptionally danceable. In fact, dancing is about the only thing you can do to this stuff since it gives you a valid excuse for not listening to the lyrics: THE LYRICS themselves are nothing short of embarassing. When not referring to themselves self-righteously as "The Magnificent Five," The Ants indulge in some of the most trite romanticization of all non-Caucasians that I have heard in a long time; "Ifeel beneath the white There is a red skin suffering From centuries of taming. " But their elitist self-idolatry is even more annoying. They state flat out several times that anyone who doesn't consider them a revolutionary force in music is an "idiot." Well, I guess if the only way you can make fans is through guilt and accusation, so be it. Their forceful yet balanced dance rhythms and excellent vocal arrangements do manage to overpower and salvage a few songs such as "An- tmusic" and "Don't Be Square (Be There)," but it's still difficult for me to By FRED SCHILL Martha and the Muffins are a curiously seductive sort of band. Quietly, unagressively, they stimulated their Monday night audience at Second Chance into a steadily intensified state of arousal. The approach was subtle and understated, sometimes quite ef- fective, but we still got used.. This band simply operates at too many cross purposes. They opened their show with unassuming mid-tempo tunes heavy on rhythm and long, loping chords. The Muffins like to leave wide open spaces to play in, shooting in spur- ts of Martha's half-spoken alto vocals and lots of mellifluous keyboards. THE GUITARIST plays smooth, sweet solos on the middle strings of his guitar, adding to the seductive evasiveness of the music. The rhythms are soft and short, repeated lazily. Seldom do Muffins songs jump and pound; instead, they creep up softly from behind. The songs are based on churning stealth, rather like the sleepy rhythms of a locomotive. But the way they let off steam is singularly grotesque. The Muffins specialize in grating squawks and screeches of a variety that makes Mother Nature seem like a miser. Basically quiet musical arrangemen- ts like "Saigon" and "Hide and Seek" are shattered by shrill, strident moog solos that sound like someone blowing loudly along the edge of a strip of plastic. These shrewish solos are curious oddities, a subtle nervousness painfully stated.. THE MUFFINS' saxophonist goes screeching over the edge, though, and his presence is tolerated for reasons wholly incomprehensible to me. He un- doubtedly is trying his damnedest to be an Artist, to add- a counterpoint of striking contrast to the Muffins' con- ceptual approach to rhythm. But to me, it seemed more like an exercise in wrenching obnoxiousness, a musical scrape of the fingernails on an endless blackboard. His corpulent squawking topples the tilted, lilting Muffins sound, standing it awkwardly and disorientingly on its head. His sax solos inspire a gaggle of indelicate adjectives. His squeaks and squeals sound like someone beating a goose with a truncheon, like the Wild Kingdom with its ass on fire. Seldom have I been subjected to such groa g and caterwauling at the hands of a iere musical instrument. It made one's skin crawl, insulted the poor un- witting saxophone, and alienated all concepts previously considered musical. This man is the single most objectionable musician I have ever had the misfortune to be subjected to. THE MUFFINS were tolerable only because the saxophonist was not allowed to entirely dominate the show. Indeed, the rest of their music was quite good and occasionally creative. The bottom end of their sound is steady and danceable, weighted with short, repeated rhythms. "Halfway Through the Week," "Indecision," and "Paint- byANumber Heart" were all pleasantly churning, bottom-heavy charmers that drew dancers to the floor like ants to sugar. The idea kept occuring to me that the Muffins are probably more effective on vinyl. There, careful production could muzzle the saxophonist and make the Muffins' interesting approach a bit more lively. Monday night, it seemed that the Muffins were doing quite a few in- teresting things not very excitingly. Still, unrecorded songs like "This Year" and "One Day in Paris" were permeated with the polite sweetness the band is so adept at, tunes that rock almost subconsciously. The lyrics were articulate and descriptive, if hardly stimulating. The bassist's fingers never stopped moving in these tunes and in "I'm No Good at Conversation," providing an effective blend with Mar- tha's punching, low-scale vocals. IN SHORT, most of the material could be quite strong if the band could only decide what direction to go in, and if someone would put a silencer on the sax. The encore material was weaker than the rest, especially' "Motor Bikin'," which sounded like a bad Heart imitation. And the second encore put me away for good. I smelled a rat when Martha asked if we were ready to have our ears blown out. Sure enough, that saxophone commenced to wail pitilessly, sending me scurrying from the premises in disarray. I cannot attest to what hap- pened thereafter. LSAT GRE GMAT Test Preparation How do you prepare for these important tests? Get the facts no cost or obligation < 32466 Olde Franklin & Xtoft Farmington Hills, EdulcattonL t Ml 14801! (313) 851-2969 (tall collect) Please sendme your "What Are The Facts" brochure - Name Address Phone Test:LSAT1 3GMATO GREO 'Well of the Saints' Yeats Fest highlight' t By ANNE GADON Although most people think of William Butler Yeats as a poet, the Irishman also wrote 26 plays. And during the Fourth Annual Yeats Festival, which begins March 18, four of Yeats' plays will be performed as well as works by others who shared his idea of theatre. The purpose of the festival is "to provide a means of exploration into the similarities between Yeats and other playwrights,- says Festival Artistic Director Irene Connors. Works by Samuel Beckett, Pirandello and J.M. Synge will all be preseited in this year's festival. Symposia will be held after presentation of the plays to discuss the playwrights in comparison with Yeats. THE HIGHLIGHT of this year's festival is Synge's Well of the Saints, which will be presented by the Residen- tial College (RC) Players. According to the director, Dr. Martin Walsh of the RC drama faculty, Synge and Yeats both represented the Irish common folk in their plays, as well as a similar use of sound and movement. "Synge was personally attunedito the Irish folk experience and the tradition behind it," said Walsh. "His plays get life. He created his plays out of original folkloric sources. Everything in his plays about Irish culture he learned from mixing with peasant folk. He was an in-the-field folklorist." Walsh explained the theme of Well of the Saints as "puritanical Christianity vs. the nature Christianity of the Irish." The play traces the tale of two blind beggars who think that they are beautiful but in reality are unattrac- tive. A saint cures them of their blin- dness and they sadly learn the truth. "IT'S A COMEDY in reverse," Walsh said. "Seeing doesn't lead to a better life, in fact the beggars are worse off. "The play raises a question that is similar to those of Beckett's plays. Whose reality is better, the one you choose for yourself or the one that is chosen for you?" Well of the Saints is an outgrowth of Walsh's play production class offered this semester. The students in the class are responsible for all elements of the production, including dramaturgical research, design and construction of sets and costumes. They will also per- form a second play, The Tinker's Wed- ding, as part of the festival. Performances of Well of the Saints are March 19-21 and 26-28 at 8 p.m. in the RC Auditorium in East Quad. For more information on Well of the Saints or for any other festival events, call 764- 4311. or ientaI food to take o CHINK N THE ,RUN FORMERLY LUCKY JI FISN-N-CHIPS ut M'S An afternoon of Venetian Baroque music 1232 PACK4RD 994-3151 open Mon-Sat, 11-9 Sun,3-9 By LAURIE ANDERSON The New York Chamber Soloists per- formed music of the Italian Baroque masters Monteverdi and Vivaldi, Sun- day at Rackham Auditorium. The program was structured so that each Vivaldi work was followed by one by Monteverdi, which emphasized the great difference between the two com- posers. Some of the characteristics of Vivaldi's music are concise themes, rhythmic vitality, and logical con- tinuity in the flow of musical ideas. His is a music of restraint, and is 'emotional" only in an abstract, highly stylized manner. ON THE OTHER hand, Monteverdi's music, written 100 years earlier, is -loosely structured, with uneven lengths, free-flowing melodic develop- ment, and unsteady rhythms which .sound syncopated at times. With this "formlessness," however, Montever- .adi's compositions express a wide range of emotion, especially the vocal music. The Chamber Soloist's performance of three Vivaldi concertos was very warmly received by the audience. Vivaldi's' enormous popularity has always puzzled me, since his music is so repetitive and unvaried; at times it is reminiscent of wallpaper print - one ornate pattern repeated again and again. The polished, fluent playing of this ensemble, however, dramatized the finer aspects of Vivaldi's music. Probably the liveliest Vivdldi piece of the concert was the D Major concerto for flute, oboe, violin and.harpsichord. Especially impressive was the perfect balance between the four instruments as they tossed melodies back and forth, or soloed to the others' accom- paniment. The virtuoso violin passages were brilliantly performed, and the oboe and flute blended so beautifully together in the second movement that they sounded like one voice. THE INSTRUMENTALISTS were joined by tenors Frank Hoffneister and Charles Bressler for the performance of the Monteverdi madrigals and "Scherzi Musicali." Monteverdi's music makes great demands on a vocalist, and requires a light, supple voice with a very wide range. Charles Bresslers' voice was perfectly suited to early music (although it would probably not be appropriate for any other musical period.) His vibrato was light and natural sounding, and ap- peared to reach notes in the upper limits of his range effortlessly. While Frank Hoffmeister sang ad- mirably, his vibrato was too heavy, and Jagk d emotional expression. The tenors' performance of "Zefiro Torna," which uses for text a Petrarch sonnet about unrequited love, was especially beautiful, with its abundantly varied moods, sonorities and harmonies,. and vivid dramatic contrasts. Strangely enough, the evocative music of Monteverdi, masterfully per- formed by the Chamber Soloists, was coolly received by the audience, probably because it was unfamiliar to them. But certainly Monteverdi's music has a peculiar charm and beauty. Popular composers like Vivaldi .are heard perhaps too frequently in concerts; chamber music performers might do well to include more Mon- teverdi in their concert repertoires. "Full line of backpacking & camping equipment" Spring Inflation Busters! Entire Stock of 1981 Hiking BootsSBA G Reg. $66.98 BAGS SALE $56.98 20% OFF ALL f Teknisport FRAME HIKING BOOTS SPE CIAL Rough-out Smooth Grain 20% OFFNo.417 No.2/1 *398 54.9 t R4#4 nOnne R4i k Armed and ready SUMMER POSITIONS AT CAMP TAMARACK Brighton & Orfonville, Mich. Counselors-Specialists- Sunervisors-Kitchen & Maintenance Staff- (Continued from Page 5) r 'And then in the vear 2000. they all line gold and silver? It's only eight dollars. '