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The Michigan Daily Tuesday, October 6, 1992 Page 5
I
Juliana.
Hatfield
'He's got no bones
Whitley Setrakian leads dance collaboraion
:
the real
McCoy
by Scott Sterling
The time is now for a new
queen of rockin' pOp music. The
now-dusty crown has gone with-
out an heiress since Exene
Cervenka and Chrissie Hynde
mysteriously relinquished it some-
time in the late '80s. 'Foxcore'
bands (sorry ladies!) are too busy
proving that they can rca wk
despite their genitalia to care
about such titles.
But from the ashes of teen
tunesters the Blake Babies comes
Juliana Hatfield, ready and willing
to claim the noisy pop throne as
her own.
Charging out of the gate with
her glorious collection of girl riot
anthems, "Hey Babe," Hatfield
charmed critics and fans alike with
her ear-catching, tilt-a-whirl guitar
pop. Everyone from Sassy maga-
zine to Vogue hailed it as a major
beat happening. Everyone, that is,
except for Hatfield herself.
"In the beginning, I kinda
hated it," she recalls. "But I've
grown to accept it, and see its
good points. I know I can do a lot
better."
Hatfield followed the record by
touring with the Lemonheads.
Playing at the time with a tempo-
rary line-up, Hatfield has recently
assembled a permanent band,
featuring drummer Todd Phillips
and bassist Dean Fisher, that is
closer to the heavy pop nirvana
that she originally envisioned.
"Now it's just starting to get there.
It'll probably never get to where I
really want it to be, but that's life,
you always want something
more," she opines.
While she's trying to write
by Alexandra Beller
It opened with your typical
"dance-y" dance piece: colorful cos-
tumes, upbeat music and movement.
from a traditional modern dance vo-
cabulary. Despite her fluid and pro-
ficient dancers, Laurie Eisenhower's
"A.M. NYC," which opened the col-
laborative concert of Detroit-based
Laurie Eisenhower Ensemble and
Ann Arbor's "People Dancing:
Whitley Setrakian and Dancers" was
rather flat in terms of movement,
content and emotion.
The real opener of the concert
was Setrakian'.s "Rachel." Perfor-
med by Setrakian and University
dance major Jeremy Steward, this
duet combined the strongest quali-
ties of both dancers: breathtaking
lyricism (one audience member ex-
claimed "My God! Ile's got no
bones!), subtle and distinctive styles,
and dynamic and witty stage per-
sonalities.
Although they used no musical
accompaniment, the understated and
penetrating rhythms of their move-
ment and voices were engaging and
delightful. The almost "dada-ish"
unimporiance cf their text, combined
with their facetiously serious deliv-
ery made for an enchanting score to
this well-crafted and beautifully exe-
cuted duet..
NY choreographer Mark Dendy,
who was commissioned by the Troy
Public Schools to set a piece on the
Eisenhower Ensemble, presented
People Dancing &
The Eisenhower
Dance Ensemble
Mendelssohn Theater
October 3, 1992
"Rock," a Pilobolus-like trio danced
by Eisenhower members Stephanie
Pizzo and University alumni Gre-
gory Patterson and Lisa Catrett Bel-
rose. After an eerie and unusual
start, the piece gained steam, but not
enough to send it soaring. The
dancers performed the birdlike
movement laudably, executing the
contrasting styles with delicacy and
precision. The piece had a spirits-
out-of-the-grave feel to it, perhaps a
modernized Act II of "Giselle," and
this gave it an untrustworthy eph-
emeral quality which the audience
could not quite sink their teeth into.
The same trio was not capitalized
on in Eisenhower's "Interims." An
abstract look at some type of dys-
functional family, the work was at
once too abstruse and too obvious.
While the relationships and the nar-
rative were unclear, the symbolic
gestures -- such as one dancer stop-
ping, resisting and finally being
pulled into an endless circle of run-
ning - were pat, cliched and over-
stated.
Setrakian then perked up the au-
dience again. In her "Caledonia,"
danced by six company members,
she presented a fresh interpretation
of Traditional Irish dancing. The
movement was both relaxed and ex-
acting, with torsos flying free over
tightly bound and well maneuvered
footwork. The dancers were spright-
ly and spirited, performing the work
with vigor. Amy Drum, in a short
but memorable solo was like a swift
breath of crisp autumn air. The
dancers' exuberant energy sent vi-
brations as well as smiles through
the entire audience.
No, she's NOT ugly. Juliana Hatfield is stunningly beautiful, and the new
queen of noisy pop delirium. Life is good.
more rocking, three-chord songs,
her knack for catchy tunes still
creeps in "It's an instinct for me
to write catchy pop songs, but I
want to move away from that.,"
she emphasizes.
One way Hatfield has tried to
get that heavier edge is by rough-
ing up her vocal cords with
cigarettes. "It's turned into a bit of
an addiction, which is pretty bad,"
she says .
Along with her ear for divine
melodies, Juliana Ilatfield also has
quite a way with words. Brimming
with obsession and isolation, her
lyrics are the source for constant
psychoanalysis. With lines like
"I'm ugly/With a capital U/And I
don't need a mirror to tell me it's
true," it's not difficult to see why.
"I don't care, I guess I ask for
it," she says. "I'm glad that people
are interested in my lyrics."
Having taken the indie-rock
path to its logical conclusion, Ilat-
field has taken the plunge into the
big leagues by inking a deal with
Atlantic Records, home to her pal
Evan Dano's band, the Lemon-
heads (on whose last album she
played bass on).
"Making that record convinced
me that I could pretty much do
what I wanted on a major label. It
gave ine confidence, since I saw
Evan doing pretty much what he
wanted to do."
With plans to record the fol-
low-up to "Hey Babe" early next
year, there are some big expecta-
tions for Juliana I latficld to live up
to. "I like the expectations, 'cause
that's a challenge to Ine. I know I
can meet those challenges and
make a really good record."
JULIANA HA TFEILD plays to-
night at the Blind Pig. Doors open
at 9 p.m.
* Find Beat
Happening
in the
basement
by Greg Baise
One of America's hidden trea-
sures, Beat Happening melts a car-
nal/carmel rock primitivism onto a
popcorn bed of raunch and whole-
someness, creating some very tasty
ear candy. K Records magnate
Calvin Johnson has to be the sexiest
man in rock, whether his deep voice
be singing the lonely plaints of
"Teenage Caveman" or the raunchy
lust song that may or may not have
,ECR REVIEW
I
f(5; dm cov)
DEPARTMENT OF
RECREATIONAL
SPORTS
INTRAMURAL SPORTS PROGRAM
CROSS COUNTRY RUN
(Team and Individual),
"As groundbreakng as Simnone de Beauvoirs
The Second Sex and Betty Friedans
The Feminine Mystique."
-Laura Shapiro, Newsweek
"Backlash is the right book at exactly the
right tine....This trenchant, passionate, and lively book
should be an eye-opener even for feminists who thought they
understood what has been going on."
-Elaine Showalter, front page, Los Angeles Times Book Review
"nvigorating and thorough...Abracing look at
the counterassault in our society on women's progress over the
last decade.' -Ellen Goodman, New York Times Book Review
"Backlash is a must-read for women across
the nation." -Eleanor Smeal, President,
The Fund for the Feminist Majority
"Spellbinding and frightening,this book is a
wake-up call to the men as well as the women who are struggling
to build a gender-respectful society."
-Robert Reich, author of The Work of Nations
Entry Deadline:
Wednesday 10/7
4:30 p.m.
IMSB Main Office
Run Date: Thursday 10/8
Run Location: UM Golf Course
Run Starting Time: 6:00 p.m.
For Additional Information Contact IMSB 763-3562
Beat Happening
You Turn Me On
K/Sub Pop
anything to do with John Lennon,
"You Turn Me On," - as in "Turn
me on, dead man."
And of their innocence - I can't
help but imagine this trio playing
someone's basement while Mom
makes Kool-Aid and the younger
kids sell cookies. "You Turn Me
On" has the guitar-drum-voice trio
of Calvin, Heather, and Bret present-
ing some beautiful drones culled
from which ever seminal electric
rock band you care to mention, as
well as standard pithy pop nuggets
like "Sleepy Head."
Some genius got Stuart Moxham
of Young Marble Giants to produce
half of this record, and if you rec-
ognize any of these names, I'm sure
you're thrilled. If you aren't, then I
have nothing more to say,
BEAT HAPPENING really is play-
ing somebody's basement (The Lab,
144 Hill) tonight. Opening bands in-
.1.,. 1 Df)3AII/' A F A L'E na ,A t,n~