Page 8 - The Michigan Daily - Thursday, January 8, 1987 Records (Continued from Page 7) "Umbrella," it shows that these newcomers can be engaging for a number of reasons. - Beth Fertig Plan 9 Anytime , Anyplace, Anywhere Pink Dust Records Plan 9's latest platter, Anytime; Anyplace ,Anywhere , is an odd little mouthful. The title track, the record's best-ut, is a taste of Frank Sinatra style dinner music. It's short, it's sweet, and makes you want to rub elbows and spend the night clubbing with the '40s jet set. "Anytime, Anyplace, Any- where" shares side two with "Op- ium Night," an interesting, if somewhat lackluster stab at psych- edelic dinner music- so pour some wine, light some incense, and smoke some opium, but try not to fall asleep. Side one is a bit more upbeat thanks in part to some circus fun- style keyboards. The album kicks off with the chirpy psychotic church organ of "Green Animals" that swirls into an electric animal underworld. "(Living in a world of) Full Counts" is an off-kilter bit of subdued quirkiness. And "Coloring in the Dark's" atmospheric sound transforms itself into a crazed ride on a merry go round gone beserk. All parents be forewarned: keep the children away from Plan 9's amusement park. - Danny Plotnick Karamazov Sister Six-song cassette Fleurs du Mal boards and drummer Johnnie Ging- rich. Seifert gives an emotion-packed delivery on the furious "Dancing Against You." But the cream of this crop is "Wisdom of Love," which is co-written by Dunham, where Seifert has a high-pitched growl like the Airplane-era Grace Slick and the band takes a some- what funk groove led by the bass- ist's twangy fretwork. Karamazov Sister gets a little experimental on the second side's "One More," where Seifert's half-spoken vocals and the band's quirky rhythms lend a dramatic flair. Karamazov Sister's weaknesses are nothing that a little more time and experience can take care of; but even without the "debut" moniker, this six song cassette, available at Schoolkids' Records, is a fine piece of work. Watch out for these guys. -Beth Fertig G.B.H. Oh No It's G.B.H. Again! Combat Core G.B.H. is back, and their latest release is a four-song EP called Oh No It's G.B.H. Again! Side one is completely ruling. Jock's "I Am The Hunted"-style guitar playing shines throughout the hell hoppin' "Malice In Wonderland" mayhem. Colin is at his yelping best in "Lost In The Fog" which also features some surprise hardcore har- monica. "Lost In The Fog" has some "No Survivors"-like pacing. It's chorus isn't as ruling as the a- forementioned, but it still rocks. Side two doesn't match up. It's all right, but they've done better. "Get Out Of The City" has a big guitar sound and big drums, but it just seems like they should be play- ing faster. Colin's vocals also seem to be lost in the mix. "Company of Wolves" gets bogged down in the same way. It starts off with a mean ass guitar intro, but then it fails to explode as much as it should; it's good, but G.B.H. can do better. So there you have it: side one is as explosive as barbecueing with kerosene, and side two is like bast- ing. -Danny Plotnick Luther Vandross Give Me the Reason Epic Luther, Luther! To paraphrase the Prez: "Where's the rest of you?" While Luther is no longer fat, his album is flat. So while Luther's singing is as smooth as ever, the 4 songs don't do as much for me. I miss the orchestral arrangements of his earlier records, meshing with Luther's honeyed vocals to create lush, but never saccharine songs. Here, the generic, and sometimes gimmicky instrumental settings rarely add to the songs. This is doubly unfortunate because the songs need the help in most cases. I liked "See Me" pretty well (a pleasant, poppy love song) and I developed a weak spot for the Wonder-esque slowie, "So Amaz- ing." Still, this just isn't stick-to- your-ribs fare; and just because Lu- ther is newly svelte doesn't mean we all want the diet plate, too. - Jeff Stanzler Plan 9's latest: a "lackluster stab at psychedelic dinner music." With this great Iggy Pop revival coming full circle, it's a good thing there's a fine debut release by a new local band to make all that lime- light now shining on Ann Arbor worth keeping in focus. This new release I'm referring to is in the form of a six-song cassette, and the swell new talent is Karamazov Sister. Karamazov Sister is a hot little foursome that's new enough to only have played twice in town, but good enough to make this cassette sound truly professional and to the best advantage of its 8-track pro- duction facilities. The band can truly boast a sound of its own. They're fronted by vocalist Linnea Seifert, whose striking alto is per- haps a little too strong for her own good, but loaded with an energy matched well by the players' clean musicianship. "Private Fear" opens the tape with a blast, Seifert wailing full steam ahead about love and de- ception - the themes of all of these songs. At times the lyrics, like Seifert's singing, get a little heavy, but a dramatic start is al- ways more promising than a forgettably wimpy splash, and in the case of Karamazov Sister the impact is always memorable and unusually well performed. The band's playing throughout is in fine form: clear, clean guitar lines by Tomek Chenczke (who has written all of these songs) carry the tunes over the flexible rhythm section of Tom Dunham on bass and key- Books. Bordering On Trouble by Janet W. Brown and -Andrew Maguire Adler & Adler $24.95 Hardcover $14.95 Paperback Anyone who has ever puzzled think-tank, one supposes). It is not over why Latin Americans harbor because we have never done any- so much antipathy against the thing for Latin Americans, the United States will have his eyes book tells us, it is because we have opened by Bordering On Trouble, a done the wrong things. new book on Latin American re- The essayists who wrote Border- sources and politics from the World ing On Trouble -the book is a Resources Institute (a Washington series of eleven loosely related I ..! w.k I 41 I] a- chapters-attack the long-held notion that what the United States needs to preserve order in Latin America is a strong military pre- sence and governments (democratic or undemocratic) which will en- courage industrial growth and investment from United States corporations. This attitude, and the resulting foreign policy, the authors argue, only make things worse. Traditional United States policies towards Latin America have caused the unrest that we have tried so strenuously to suppress. The problem, as much as anything, is ignorance, combined with a traditional view of Latin America as an American fiefdom. Bordering on Trouble offers some illumination insights into how Americans and Latins perceive each other. "Americans," writes David DeVoss, author of the chapter "Mexico City's Limits," "see 'ille- gal aliens' crossing their border, while Mexicans see undocumented workers responding to economic opportunities in states illegally stolen from Mexico." Admittedly, the illegal alien problem is more a matter of per- spective than of ignorance, but still, say the authors, America simply does not understand Latin America. Bordering On Trouble spends over 400 pages studying the roots of political and resource prob- lems in the region. President Rea- gan tries to sum it up in seven words: "Soviet-Cuban power play- pure and simple." Eventually, the authors say, we will suffer for our ignorance with increased security problems in the region. In the book's prescriptive chapter, "Saying Aye or Nay," the editors conclude "Nothing is more important to regional security in Latin America than assuring farm- ers secure title to the land that they work." Keeping the peace in Latin America will depend on keeping Latin Americans satisfied. This may sound like a problem for Latins to concern themselves with; however, the authors say the United States and Latin America are so interdependent and the United States so influential in the region, that we both have the need and the influence to deal with the problem. Resource concerns are as press- ing as political problems and as much in need of United States attention. Two of the book's most dire predictions are the possible silt- ing up of the Panama Canal, which would reduce it to a "worthless ditch" by 1999, and the destruction of the Amazon rainforest, producer of 40% of the world's oxygen. Bordering On Trouble is an excellent book for those already versed in United States-Latin Amer- ican relations, but the fine points which some of the chapters concern themselves with (rice growing in Colombia, for instance) and the lack of a cohesive structure will probably cause those seeking an introduction to the topic to look elsewhere. --Edward Kleine /SUH SLp AaEE 6cE A moo04 le' I lof 04"Un s * WANTED: Actresses and/or Models for an R-rated comedy feature film. Send full-length photo and, if have, resume, to: TRI - SUN FILMS P.O. Box 11163 Chicago, Illinois 60611 S- MLI l~\ I WHAT'S THE SCOOP? check out The Michigan Daily and get a taste of all the flavors around campus A i FREEE 4 Ulrich's makes book buying simple. You don't have to search through aisles and aisles looking for the books you need. You simply fill out our BOOK RUSH slip as shown above. Hand it to one of our friendly clerks (We hire an additional 100 employees to make it easier for you). They know exactly where your books are located. In a few minutes, they will hand your books to you. SO-TAKE THE ADVANTAGE, IT'S FREE. do WO 14 u cC ;+ or, p s( What's Happening Recreational Sports SPECIAL BOOK RUSH 7th-Wednesday, 8:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. .8th-Thursday 8:30 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. 9th-Friday 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. 10th-Saturday 9:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. 11th-Sunday Noon to 5:00 p.m. HOURS FOR JANUARY 12th-Monday 8:30 a.m. to 8:00 p.m. 13th-Tuesday 8:30 a.m. to 7:00 p.m. 14th-Wednesday 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m. 15th-Thursday 8:30 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., 16th-Friday 8:30 a.m. to 5:30 p.m. I+ BUILDING HOURS: January 7, 1987 - May 5, 1987 53Y EARS CCRB NCRB M-F 7:00 a.m.- 10:00 p.m. M-F 7:00 a.m.- 10:00 p.m. 4l