4 - The Michigan Daily - Weekend etc.- Thursday, October 13, 1994 Discussing R.E.M. with all but the man on the moon BY MOSHE FLAMENBAUM SAM GOODSTEIN AND JASON LICHTSTEIN With the release of their latest album, "Monster", R.E.M. has once again demonstrated their ability to tadically change style and produce great music. R.E.M. fans cross the musical spectrum, and their ever-changing sound has added followers and lost some fans along the way. With their last four albums, from Green to Mon- ster, they have burst into the main- stream-- and this no doubt irks many R.E.M. faithful. Here, three fans dis- cuss how Berry/Buck/Mills/Stipe have changed from "Gardening at Night" to "yo, can't find nothing on the radio." JL: I heard that Jefferson Holt and Bertis Downs finished off all of the "pizza" at Wharehouse Records on Monday night. SG: Yeah, and did you know that Black Francis has led a coup in Ath- ens, and will now sing lead for R.E.M, the B-52s and the Butthole Surfers? JL: Well, there's a definite Pixie- like sound to this album, notably "King of Comedy." And that line about being a "sad tomato" sounds like a line only Mr. Francis could invent.. MF: Personally, my first exposure to this album occurred last week as I sat reading on my Greenwood Ave. porch. Three strapping young lads wearing backwards baseball caps, with Greek letters embroidered on them, were tossing around the pig- skin asking Kenneth what the fre- quency was... That is sad tomatoes, my friends. SG: You will never hear them asking Driver 8 to take a break, dude. Seriously, their ability to change sty- listically is remarkable. The chimy guitars and muffled lyrics of "Chronic Town" through "Fables" changed to the hard driving rock of Life's Rich Pageant and Document which evolved into the melancholy pop of "Out of Time" and "Automatic" which became...grrrr..."Monster"! JL: I am disappointed though we don't have the pleasure of enjoying the vocals of Mikey Mills, long hair and all, who still seems unable to assert himself socially. Poor guy,just can't seem to land a date. SG: Yeah, I saw "Superman" on the MTV Softball joke. He was the pitcher and nobody wanted to talk to him. LL Cool J even said that he was a loser. MF: I can't understand his limited role, vocally, throughout all of their albums. Every song he has sang lead has been superior to the sometimes straining voice of Mr Stipe. "Texarkana," "Superman," and "Maps and Legends" all are some of the band's best. "Its CRAZY what we could have had!!!!" Ouch. Either sing that an octave lower buddy or pass the mic to Mills. JL: I too think Mills is underrated, but the above is coming from a boy who co-chaired the Flint, Michigan Murmur fan club when he was in the 4th grade. Yet now he is more into The Beautiful South and the Trash Can Sinatras than R.E.M. But after that horrible experience at Wherehouse the other night, when all of Markley converged on South U and Church, I might too abandon Stipe and Co. for The La's. SG: La's Shmas. Who cares who else listens, if it is good, it is good. When their tour begins, I am sure that the two of you will be there while our friends from Phi Upsilon Kappa are in line for the next Spin Doctors al- bum. Pure unadulterated crap. By the way, a common misconception is that R.E.M. is stage-shy. The fact is that this band made a name for themselves in the early days by playing shows at Churches Fried Chickens all over the south. MF: Wow, you're just filled with fun facts Sammy. You are right though, not even the 89X poster chil- dren can contaminate the auditory pleasures this band provides. And speaking, of a tour, I can't quite tell if I'm excited or nauseous. On one hand, I don't have to see B-sides and Boot- legs entitled, "Radio Song-The tower of Luv bug mix." ( Since REM re- fused to go on tour after producing Out of Time, Warner Bros. released some not so well know sub-standard renditions of their work.) On the other hand, Stipe did vow never to go on a stadium tour and the idea of seeing R.E.M. at the Palace of Auburn Hills sends chunks oozing up my esopha- gus. Do I smell sell out? JL: Ooh,FPam, you know just what I really need. SG: In no way did they sell out. To sell out, you change your music to fit an audience. "Monster" is perfect evidence that they didn't do this. If they wanted to sell-out, they wouldn't have made an album so inaccessible as "Monster". They would have made an entire album of "Stand" and "Drive". "Monster" is inspired from within, not from without. JL: Too bad that Kurt Cobain wasn't around to hear it. "Let Me In" was for him. 'People' has the times and trials of Simpson By KIRK MILLER Schiffer/David Copperfield marriage, The '90s have been kind to "People" has been there to show us "People"; from Nancy Kerrigan to the triumphs and tragedies of people anorexic actresses to the Claudia just like you and me (except they're a wy rich, famous and have ten times the dysfunctions). However, with the ar- rival last week of the complete guide to the O.J. trial, "People" has taken IThe Magazine Column I Jeff Daniels In person & on screen To benefit The National Institute For Burn Medicine & The Purple Rose Theater --- the next steop in reclaiming the crown of trashy exposes from the "National Enquirer" and "Time." As a quick program guide, it's a keeper; there are big glossy pictures of the dead and accused, a rundown on all the major players (55 at last count), a murder timeline, and even the now obligatory critique of the media. You know, the media feels really bad about exploiting this, so they must end with their weekly con- fessional to absolve them of sin. Ab- solved? Great, back to the trial. It's kind of like buying a program at a concert, or a football game, for that matter. There's a Who's Who guide to the players, although this is rather skimpy and nothing we haven't seen before. True "People" facts that only America's favorite entertainment magazine could provide are notorioulsy absent; there is no men- tion of perennial houseguest Brian "Kato" Kaelin's recent decision to move in with Charlie Sheen. When Charlie was dating other X-rated porn stars, "People" was there; why stop now? The rest of the hit list is little more than a head shot followed by a brief description of their role in the trial. Instead of spreading these out over eight pages, "People" might as well have gone the extra yard and made them into trading cards, which they would fit perfectly on. As the recent skyrocketing of prices for O.J. foot- ball cards proved, kids would kill for the chance to collect and trade this wise investment ("I'll swap a Robert Kardashian for a Paula Barbieri.") In five years the Kato card might be the same collector's dream as the Elvis plate. One way "People" has tried to tackle the issue delicately is by giving the whole thing an ironicsnarky twist. The controversial cup of melted ice cream at the death scene was deemed worthless as the "evidence melted away under scrutiny." Whoa, stop me, I'm dying here! That's entertain- ment' By the end the whole issue comes out like a bad Encyclopedia Brown story, only missing the last phrase "If you haven't spotted the flaw(s) inr O.J.'s testimony, turn to pages 155- 180 to find them." At one time I felt magazines like "People" were the only ones who should be running a story - like this, because it is so out of touch with the real world. However, as we see how justice is really being served for the rich, the state of race relations in America today and the controversey over television in the courtroom, the O.J. trial as moved beyond glossy tabloid fodder into something much better served by a well-researched, book-length novel long after the trial is over. For now "People" is over stepping its bounds as a fun trashy read. Stick with the Best-Dressed list and Sexiest-Man awards for now, and leave Americas Most Wanted for the real writers. At Michigan Theater Sunday, October 23, 1994 6:00 Jeff Daniels Autograph session 7:00 Open film discussion with Jeff Daniels 7:30 Purple Rose Of Cairo 9:00 Dessert and Coffee $100.00 Patron dinner $20.00 General Admission $12.50 Student Discount Visa & Master Card Accepted For Ticket Info Call: National Institute For Burn Medicine (313) 769-9000 4eto 4t., Io O.J. seen in "Naked Gun 33 1/3: The Final Insult" as Det. Nordberg. 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