4
Page 8 -- The Michigan Daily - Monday, October 24, 1988
Missing
Band
New wave
flock gets
blown off
course -
roosts at local
R&B house
BY MARGIE HEINLEN
QUESTION: What do a pig and a
seagull have in common?
a. Both eat things that other peo-
ple throw away
b. Neither are kosher
c. Both make obnoxious sounds
d. nothing
t This were the only things I could
come up with when I read that A
Flock of Seagulls were playing at
the Blind Pig tonight.
Wait - don't be hasty. Let's
think about this. Could this be the
same band that put out the albums
A Dream Come True ,Listen and
the original A Flock of Seagulls
and then re-released them all in '86
(along with "Best of' album the very
same year)? Yes, this same flock
thrilled millions of pre-pubescent
boys and girls in the early '80s with
their harmless new wave, new fash-
ion sound, setting the stage for other
such pretty boys as Duran Duran and
later OMD. A band who seemed to
soar so high and so fast only to
smash into a cliff like Johnathan
Livingston and disappear from the
musical scene.
Oh, and the hair. Lead singer
Mike Score amazed the listening
public with a hairdo that defied
gravity and actually looked like
seagull wings (in flight, of course),
while producing successes such as
Game Theory
Two Steps From the Middle Ages
Enigma
We don't admit it, but there's a little part of all of us that likes to
be hurt. The part that doesn't mind misery as long as we do a damn
good job of wallowing in it. The part that purposely reminds us of
lost loves just so we can have the pleasure of a good sigh. The part
thatmakes us stick our tongues into cold sores just to feel that little
twinge.
Scott Miller has mastered that little twinge. He's captured it, dis-
tilled it, and injected just enough of it into each Game Theory song
to lead his listeners into that emotional territory that lies just be-
tween elation and melancholy and feels better than either. Combin-
ing edgy, complex, but affecting, guitar/bass/keyboard melodies with
some of the most clever, if abstract, verbiage this side of Elvis
Costello, singer/guitarist Miller manages to hit every known nerve
in the human body on the San Franciscan quintet's fourth LP.
Nowhere is his skill exemplified better than on "The Picture of
Agreeability," a sparse, 50-second synthesizer and voice piece that
should be listed in the dictionary under the word "poignant." Miller
paints a succinct portrait of how people too mature for their own
good can rationalize a failed relationship - romantic or otherwise -
amid a more developed chord structure than most bands can create in
five minutes.
Ditto for "Amelia, Have You Lost," which tells much the same
story ("Next life, I'll be the young distraught/ You be the jungle
man, now caught/ Amelia, I can't give what I haven't got") while
tearing your heart eut and sending it sliding down an endless fret-
board into the deepest pit of remorse. But not all is woe on Two
Steps. Miller's "miserable whine" shifts from melancholy to mali-
cious on the distortioa-infused "What the Whole World Wants" and
the sardonic anthem to covetousness, "In a DeLorean." And if
"Leilani" doesn't leave you feeling like you've just swallowed a
whole chocolate cake, it's time for therapy.
Most importantly, this is a musically fascinating album. Miller's
trademark ability to write complex, interesting songs will probably
turn off a lot of listeners - with all the dissonance, unexpected
chord changes, and intermeshing lyrics on Two- Steps, it's almost
impossible to follow any song on the first listen-through. But let
those pinheads listen to the Georgia Satellites, then. Better things
await those willing to withstand the rush of dissected phrases and
oddly-married chords that define the bizarro world of Game Theory.
Go ahead, stick your tongue in that sore. You know you want to.,
-Jim Poniewozik
Circus Of Power
Circus Of Power
RCA Records
"Street Rock": the latest effort by a publicity department to affix a
label on a musical style. The image: "...tattoos, motorcycles, and ral
faded jeans...". The sound: mostly Aerosmith and Stones. Examples:
Faster Pussycat, Guns n' Roses, Zodiac Mindwarp and the Love
Reaction, and, case in point, Circus of Power.
They've got the guitars, the jeans, the cycles, and the tattoos.
Especially tattoos - courtesy of famed New York tattoo artist Spider
Webb's work, amongst others. What they don't have is Zodiac's self-
parodying sense of humor, G 'n' R's all-out coolness, and most
importantly, they don't have the songs. Iggy Pop contributes a song to
the album, but considering his work lately, that ain't much to brag about.
The rest of the songs ain't much to brag about either. So why bother?
-Chuck Skarsaune
Remember these guys? NO? You probably don't remember hair mousse, The Preppy
Handbook, or the movie Valley Girl, either, then. But you connoisseurs of early '80s
culture can relive junior high with A Flock of Seagulls tonight.
"Space Age Love Song," "I Ran"
and other such disyllabic hits as
"Wishing," "Talking," "Transfer"
and "Action." On their latest album,
Story of a Young Heart, maybe
they'll tell us what they've been do-
ing and where they've been going for
the last seven years.
And could this be the bar which
has brought us Firehose's post-punk
riffs, a Blues Festival featuring gui-
tar. and piano classics, R&B great
Barrance Whitfield, and the Trinidad
Tripoli Steel Band already this fall?
The Blind Pig has long been a sym-
bol of classic, well, at least, good,
old rock and roll, R&B, reggae and
even a touch of bluegrass now and
then for many Ann Arborites. Not
exactly a haven for Nectarine-style
synthesizer bands.
It reminds me of looking into my
granola-style roommate's closet to
find some cool, all-natural earth
clothes to wear, and instead finding a
pair of red and grey parachute pants
with zippers up the sides and a fish-
net tank top from Merry-go-Round.
It was a shock, but, hey, we've all
got skeletons in our closet and
something embarrassing in our
wardrobe that we just can't seem to
throw away.
So, put on your parachute pants
and colored hair mousse. You can
wash it out the next day and no one
at school will know about this part
of your past.
Sunipou -«p,, sT ' Uo3
om su? -IJ se ,uotooui u oeqd Sid
e pu linguos op wq ,, 'uonsanb
oqI of Iomsu oqi 'AvA otp £g
If you want to find out for yourself,
or just check out the new hair styles,
A FLOCK OF SEAGULLS will be
appearing at the Blind Pig at 10
p.m. tonight.Tickets are $12.
'$
44
Talk Radio
Continued from Page 7
hard-hitting host.
Stu (Ken Weitzman) tells us that he used to
work with Champlain in his early radio days
when Champlain would purposely play the same
song 25 times in a row to aggravate his boss. In
a poignant scene Linda (Maryscott O'Connor)
tells of her strange and sporadic love affair with
Barry. And from Dan (Darrious Hilmon), we
learn that "Barry Champlain" is just a personality
created for entertainment and profit purposes.
Throughout the play everyone says "It's just a
show," but this "show" is Barry Champlain's
life. He eventually becomes the victim of his
own fagade.
Now, who calls in to "Nighttalk with Barry
Champlain?" Well, as Champlain himself would
say, if these callers represent the people of this
country, then we're in big trouble. (But then
again, the sane and productive people in the
world probably aren't listening to his show.) We
hear a great variety of personalities: an obsessed
bigot who calls Champlain a "Jew boy," a ex-
*
convict cabdriver who beats his kids with brushes
and belts, a woman who's terrified of her garbage
disposal, an immigrant who wants to see new
episodes of I Love Lucy and won't believe that
most of the cast is dead, and many more.
Only seven actors play 29 different voices, and
you'd never know that there weren't really 29 ac-
tors playing the roles. Melissa Zafarana, Keith
Fenton, Eric Wolf, Ella Foley, Darlene Zweng,
Alex Irvine, and Mark Wilson all do an extraor-
dinary job of creating distinctive personalities.
Although they are not on stage, the audience can
visualize these bizarre callers as they sit glued to
their radio listening to Barry Champlain, hero or
enemy.
Amidst all the talk of controversial issues,
Talk Radio has its share of hilarious moments.
Jon Casson plays Kent, in a smashing,
unforgettable performance. Kent is the typical
spoiled, stoned and generally clueless teenager
who thinks that life is one big rock video. After
Kent confesses that his melodramatic story about
his dying girlfriend was a fabrication, Champlain
invites him down to the station (despite his boss'
refusal) as a special guest. All Kent can say as he
staggers into the station is an awestruck "Wow...
this is great!" Champlain mocks him as a sad
future of America and says "Are you on drugs?
Or is this just your naturally moronic self?" Kent
then proceeds to give his warped philosophy on
freedom, revolution and fascism.
Champlain probes Kent for some kind of
emotional and intelligent reaction, but fails.
"Kent, we discuss a lot of disturbing subjects
on this show. Tragic things. Frightening things.
Doesn't any of that bother you?"
"No," Kent says.
"Why not?"
"It's just a show!" Kent laughs.
Well, Talk Radio is not just a show. It suc-
ceeds in providing us with a candid look at
America, its problems, and most of all, its peo-
ple. We see the man behind Barry Champlain and
understand why he's angry and frustrated.
"The world is shot to hell and you're all
goners," he declares. Is it? You decide; take the
dare and meet Barry Champlain in Talk Radio.
p (
WHAT'S
HAPPENING
I
q
a
TALK RADIO kicks off the second weekend
of its run this Thursday, October 27th at 8 p.m.
at the Trueblood Theatre. Friday and Saturday's
performances are also at 8 p.m. and Sunday's is
at 2 p.m. Student tickets are $S with ID.
RECREATIONAL SPORTS
*ROCKCL IMBING TRIP TO GRAND LEDGE PARK
TRIP DATE: Saturday, October 29, 1988
PRE-TRIP MEETING: Wednesday, October 26
7pm North Campus Recreation Building
Call 764-3967 for more information and to sign up.
GET ITI
FROM THE
GRAPEVINE
The Personal Column
MICHIGAN DAILY CLASSIFIED ADS
NATIONAL
SCIENCE FOUNDATION
Fellowships for
U.S. students
at or near the beginning of
their graduate study in science
or engineering.
ANN ARBOR'S
CHURCH OF CHRIST
(Followers of Jesus Christ using the Bible
as our only guide and authority.)
Invites YOU to Worship with Us
I
SUNDAY...9:30 AM, 6:00 PM 53
WEDNESDAY...7:30 PM
COLLEGE CLASSES ON...
CHRISTIAN EVIDENCES
You CAN prove that God exists,
and that Jesus Christ is His Soni
TRANSPORTA TION INFO 662-9928
30 W. Stadium Blvd.
Phone 662-2756
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N UCt M
Stdum
W. Stadium
P~ineer Course
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f1
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=Walk-
"The most important political trial of the decade."
Wm Kunstler
Political repression in the United States:
The Puerto Rico-Hartford 15 case
A lecture by
Elias Castro
Defendant in the
Puerto Rico Hartford 15 case
October 26 7:30
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