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Page 8-The Michigan Daily- Friday, January 10, 1992
whowhatwherewhen


The Psychodots, i.e. the Bears
without Adrian Belew, play Rick's
tonight. New City says they "com-
bine funky, scruffy, melody-rich
rock 'n' roll with wry whimsical
lyrics." Doesn't everybody? Call
996-2747 for more info.
There are more yo-yo's in the
New Duncan Imperials, who ap-
pear at the Blind Pig tonight. This
Chicago band plays songs like
"Home Sweet Mobile Home,"
which proclaims, "I drink beer in a
folding chair/ I watch 'Wheel of
Fortune' in my underwear." The
Courier-Journal best describes the
Imperials: "If you took an issue of
Mad magazine from its heyday and
set it to a rock-country beat, the
result might be pretty close." Call
996-8555 for more info.
On the jazz side of things this
weekend, the opening gala concert

for the Kerrytown Concert House's
Jazz Artist's Series will be pre-
sented tomorrow night. Featuring
bebop pianist Tommy Flanagan
and bassist George Mraz for two
shows at 7 and 9 p.m., the concert
also includes a champagne and wine
toast. Tickets are $15 for general
admission and $20 for assigned
seats. For more information, or to
make reservations, call 769-2999.
Oh, dear. What has happened to
our Pixies? They've gone from the
greatest rock 'n' roll band in. the
world (check out Surfer Rosa) to a
burned out, boring foursome with
nothing left to say. And now, their
tour, which was to bring them to
Ann Arbor on February 8, has been
inexplicably cancelled. Ah, who
needs 'em? Even more depressing is
the fact that Britain's indie pretty
boys, Chapterhouse, can't make
their Ann Arbor debut opening for
the Pixies. Life sucks.

ages to take lines like "Well, I say
screw it/ my mom and dad do it/ and
that's good enuff for me," so popu-
lar among Los Angeles-based Poi-
son wannabes, and turn them into
quality music - no small feat.
Danger Danger has something spe-
cial about them that separates them
from other bands of their type, a
certain caliber. They may not be
dangerous yet, but like the monkey
on their cover, they sure have
evolved.
-Kristen Knudsen
Bob Seger and the
Silver Bullet Band
The Fire Inside
Capitol
Like Bruce Springsteen and Tom
Petty, Bob Seger is a musician with a
trademark style. As he says in "Take
a Chance," the first song on his lat-
est album, The Fire Inside, "I'm ex-
actly what you see." It's somewhat
formulaic writing, as Seger delivers
music that most tend to take as au-
tobiographical.
Although it's often difficult to
differentiate his more recent music
from what he wrote a decade ago,
with the help of touches like the
synthesizers on tracks like "The
Real Love," the accordion on
"Sightseeing," or the acoustic
stand-up bass on "New Coat of
Paint," Seger is able to work in sub-
tle variation.
Perhaps the most obviously
Seger-ish track is the radio warrior,
"The Fire Inside," with words and
music rolling out together with a
contagious rhythm, succumbing on-
ly to the inspiring piano that alter-
nately hides, then returns to the
forefront.

The predictability of The Fire
Inside isn't always fulfilling,
though. "Which Way," is rather
cheesy lyrically and musically. The
guitar solos, however, are undeni-
able likable; but in this instance,
they're not enough.
- Kim Yaged

0

Swervedriver
Raise
A&M
Swervedriver is, quite simply, a
driven, rhythmic Chapterhouse, or
one of any other of your favorite
Creation bands. Raise is an abrasive
wash of guitars, with bits of
feedback - pleasantly, dreamily
harsh.
If the Mad Max movies could,
somehow transform into a band,
they would be Swervedriver. But
Max would be a less gritty, dust-
free Brit, retaining the blissed-out.
atmosphere and twisted life.
Adam Franklin's vocals twist
this serious apocalyptic road image
because he sounds a helluva lot like
Dave Pirner of Soul Asylum. Frank-
lin, however, is a little more laid
back and less urgent.
All the songs on Raise are long,
but the images created by noise and
the magnificent, riveting jams in-
sure length doesn't detract from the
tunes themselves. The second side,
especially "Rave Down," is more
succinct, less meandering.
Whatever has flowed from
Swervedriver's consciousness -
from the arty buried, low vocals to
the distinctive guitar steerings -
has certainly made for some moody
music to muse by.
-Annette Petruso


HENDRIX
Continued from page 7
His greater strength lay in the
variety of musical styles he incor-
porated and his unmatched intimacy
with the electric guitar. This con-
cert - a short set of uneven quality
- may represent mediocre Hendrix
for many critics, but compared to
most of the musicians that perform
today, he was still brilliant.
Watching Hendrix 18 days be-
fore he died, tired because he was
performing early in the morning and
knowing that he was not doing his
CANYON
Continued from page 5
ing on in our society, says Grand
Canyon, and we're not sure how to
deal with them.
The screenplay, written by
Kasdan and his wife Meg, consists
of a series of noble speeches, which
the hapless actors periodically hurl
at each other. The characters func-

best, makes Jimi Hendrix at the Isle
of Wright depressing. He didn't
know he was going to die, but for
someone that great to happen to
play a frustrating concert instead of
a good one is just one more example
of life's unfairness. But, the film is
a powerful statement in itself,
beautiful and gripping.
JIMI HENDRIX AT THE ISLE OF
WIGHT is playing at the Michigan
Theater tonight through January 17.
The short feature, CAMUS' SHOES
will be shown with some of next
week's performances.
tion less as real people than as
mouthpieces for Kasdan's idealistic
agenda.
Grand Canyon often darts from
character to character, trying to il-
luminate each one's life in a series of
Significant Bits. Some of the Bits
work better than others, particu-
larly the ones that involve Mack's
son, well-played by Jeremy Sisto.
He manages to distinguish his char-

After years or refusing to alow nis songs to be usea on aas, BoO Seger
has finally loosened up to help a car maker from his Motown hometown.
So "Like a Rock" is a Chevy theme. But, he hasn't sold out, damnit!

RECORDS
Continued from page 5
and demands seriousness on others,
such as the mature "I Still Think
About You," "Comin' Home," and

"Find Your Way Back Home."
Most of all, the band demands at-
tention, and something about the
strong beats and heavy hooks makes
me give it to them.
Somehow, Danger Danger man-



acter from the rest of the ensemble
- his problems seem real.
The cast overall, however, comes
off quite well, except for Mary-
Louise Parker. As Mack's secretary
and former one-night stand, she in-
vests her character with a dismal
spaciness; she often doesn't seem to
be in the same movie.
Kasdan deserves credit for at-
tempting to deal seriously with im-

portant issues which are con-
fronting our society. Perhaps with a
script that focused on a few well-
observed characters rather than a
cross-section of every little social
niche of America, the movie could
have been more than the noble fail-
ure it is.
GRAND CANYON starts today at
Briarwood and Showcase.

BUGSY
Continued from page 5
the businessman - "a good place to
trap people in to take their money."
Bening pulls no punches as the
sassy and fiercely independent star-
let lured into a rocky relationship
with Siegel. Theirs is a compelling
romance that mirrors Bugsy's Las



Vegas scheme with its facets of
grand passion and torment. The con-
nection is more than symbolic.:
Bugsy dedicates his casino to
Virginia (her nickname is Fla-
mingo), while her treachery leads to
his downfall.
The film's smart splashes of
humor within the overall somber
tenor occasionally falter. A se-
quence with Beatty in chef's hat and
apron shuttling between the kitchen
and a testy group of mobsters starts
out fresh but soon grows moldy.
And the fact that Bugsy and Vir-
ginia admit to trading snappy B.
movie dialogue doesn't necessarily
redeem their use of it. But Beatty a
Bugsy shoves Beatty as Bimbo into
the back seat where he belongs.
BUGSY is playing at Showcase and
Fox Village.


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Performers
Musicians
Technicians
Berenstain Bears
Coming Soon
To A Location Near You
Ann Arbor, Michigan:
Tuesday, January 14
University of Michigan
Michigan Union-Anderson Room
Registration: 2:30-4:30 p.m.
Kalamazoo, Michigan:
Wednesday, January 15
Western Michigan University
Dalton Center, School of Music
(Park at Miller Auditorium)
Registration: 3:00-5:00 p.m.
East Lansing, Michigan:
Thursday, January 16
Michigan State University
Union Ballroom
Registration: 2:30-4:30 p.m.
Also At Cedar Point:
Friday, January 3
Thursday, January 30
Registration: 2:30-4:30 p.m.
(Auditions begin approximately 15
minutes after registration opens)

$300ALY SHOWS BEFORE 6P
~3O BRAIN TUES. RETURNS IN SEPT.)
STUDENT WITH I.D. $3.50
Prince of Tides (R)
Father of the Bride (PG-13)
COMBO COUPON!
Present this coupon when
purchasing a large popcorn'
and receive one
FREE LARGE DRINK
Expires 1/20/92

J-

VIOLIN
LESSONS
Beginning through
Advanced.
Doctorate from U of M.
20 Years Experience.
Near Central Campus.

r~ql-, U

For additional sites and further information contact:
Cedar Point Live Shows
CEDR Sandusky, Ohio
POINT (419) 627-2390

01

For More Info.
663-8392

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