0 __ARTS, Wednesday, October 27, 1982 TeMcia al Page 6 The Michigan Daily Idol/Void; scene changes By Mike Belford T MAKES A change sometimes to see a concert in Ann Arbor that at- tracts a predominantly non-student audience, and Sunday night's crowd at Second Chance was the most diverse, interesting and numerous I'd seen at the place for a long time. Apart from the token few punks who'd turned out just to watch Billy Idol and go home, the majority were there for Romeo Void's first local appearance-vividly showing the committed level of interest in this relatively small time San Fran- cisco band. Before either of them appeared, however, a bizarre looking duo called It Play (or something) grabbed the spotlight and proceeded to swirl their way through forty minutes of the dullest monotonous industrial dirge you'll ever hear. They've obviously listened to far too many Gang of Four records than is good for them and would do well to liven up their act somewhat. Highspot of their set, and just about the only par- ticipative audience reaction, was when they announced their last song.. A brief stage reorganization and on swaggered Billy Idol-looking just the same as he did in London six years ago, with his ridiculously kitch visual ap- pearance and new "fresh from the mould" archetypal "rock and roll" band. "Just kids like me," says Idol, but I'd put them all at least over thirty at a conservative guess. If the band didn't look like punks they certainly didn't sound much like them. The guitarist seemed happiest when playing tedious drawn-out solos to the few admirers down at the front of the stage, with the bass player and drum- mer showing a distinct lack of imagination and initiative whilst main- taining a volume that all but drowned out Idol's vocals. Special mention as well must go to the female keyboard player who acted out her dumb blonde role almost to the point of perfection-a real comedy act. They managed to get the crowd hap- pily pogo-ing through "Ready Steady Go" and "Dancing with Myself" although I was disappointed Idol didn't do "King Rocker"-it might have livened up the set a little more. As it was, the encore was a heavy metal ver- sion of Tommy James' "Mony Mony." I'm sure this band could make almost anything sound like Van Halen in order to sell more records. John Lydon and Public Image illustrated the fact that there is life after Punk, and Billy Idol and his band might benefit from a little more diversity and a less obviously blatant commercial attitude. No need to be too cynical about it though-I laughed through most of the set. . . and come to think of it, so did Billy Idol himself. Altogether more seriously, Romeo Void appeared after a thirty minute break to the warmest reaction of the night. The early intensity is still there, similar in execution to the "Siouxsie and the Banshees" concept of rock theatre, but powered along by the for- 6 Punk Power? Nah, Billy Idol's just a rock star. ceful drumming of Larry Carter, and the driving rhythmic bass playing of' founder band member Frank Zin- cavage. With the new songs the band seemed to have emerged from the legacy of Joy Division that shrouded their first album and the newly adopted (dance) stance gives singer Debora Iyall much more space to glide around the stage fron dominating the show and freely inter- spacing her lyrics with the fluid saxophone punctuations of Benjamin. Bossi. True to their name, Romeo Void sang of real world problems and hear- tbreaks: You used to smile when I walked in the door, you used to smile-but not any more; but they've always got one eye over their shoulder and their tongue in their cheek; The pictures I've drawn look on convinced-while the dishwasher changes from wash to rinse. As far as being part of the California music scene Debora sees Romeo Void as essentially independent as she described in a recent interview: "Although we used to play the same places I don't consider it a club or something you can be in or out-you can be parallel." She also stresses the many diverse interests of the other band memebrs'with Frank Zincavage involved in sculpting and drawing, and Peter Woods currently exploring new photographic techniques-check the cover of the new Benefactor album. Right now, though, the band's main unifying interest is the music, and after the current tour-a lengthy schedule of relatively small town concerts-they fly to Hawaii, Japan and Europe to promote their own particular brand of post-punk experimentation. The past influences are more subcon- scious than readily admited, but the new songs -are polished and solid without falling into any of the obvious cliches of past (or recent) musical styles. "Our drummer came from the seven- ties hard rock school until he discovered the groove," joked Debora. Unfortunately it's still that school that dominates, and whilst the distance Romeo Void are creating may not be large within the wider context, every little bit certainly helps. Golden Key National Honor Society 3 INtKvIEwS: CAREER PLANNING & PLACEMENT NOV. 2, 3, 4. SEE PEACE CORPS REPS. BRING IN COM- PLETED APPLICATIONS. OR CALL (313) 226-7928 DETROIT AREA OFFICE. Students with questions may come to The Golden Key Information table located in Angell Hall, November 2 Business School, November 3 West Engineering Bldg., November 4 All Days 10:00 A.M.-3:00 P.M. A 0 Records Landscape-'Manhattan Boogie-Woogie' (RCA) Icky synthetic music. The people who brought you "Einstein a Go-go" get out their electronic trombones for another set of post-disco numbers with awful lyrics, ordinary vocals, and packaged danceability. The band boasts they have "the hottest technological advan- ces," but I don't hear anything that Spandau Ballet or Time haven't covered much more proficiently. The title song is the only one that holds much interest and it might be moderately successsful, as uninten- tional parody of the New York scene it tries to celebrate. Personally, I have great reservations for white people who use the word "boogie-woogie" prominently. And those awful trombones, rising to frequencies beyond the range of even East Coast modesty! Icky. -Ben Ticho 6 6 h N>y:, d . r' ptk 'e ' ivy% k k Ax. CC .. . a 1..x . rei~ to Crt a. Fz 1 F Y y... r neQ t~'o m et @ G( ~ s . G.G. Ea E a. lIC 'J I