The Michigan Daily - Thursday, October 27, 1994 - 9 DON'T BE GRIMM WITH THE BROTHERS Buckley makes music his own By JENNIFER BUCKLEY JeffBuckley is his father's son. End of discussion. "I'm fine. I'm independent with who I am. It's just that other people haven't caught up with me on that," he asserted. Those "other people" include music critics, press types and devoted fans of his father, the late folk-blues singer Tim Buckley, and they are eager to compare, contrast and claim Jeff. "If they come to a conclusion, there's nothing I can do about that," he said. Nothing, perhaps, except answer them with his own voice, his own mu- sic. Answer them with "Grace," his debut album on Columbia Records. An unusual mixture of influences shine through on that effort. From Zeppelin to Dylan, Big Star to blues, it's all there on "Grace." It shouldn't work, but it does. "It all fit together in my mind," Buckley commented. "All ten songs are very personal statements, and they all belonged on 'Grace."' Stories about downward spiraling relationships ("Lover You Should Have Come Over," "Last Goodbye") mesh with heavier themes of death and dis- crimination ("Eternal Life") and three very different cover tunes. All of it is drawn together by Jeff's voice-pure, sweet, and strong over an incredible range. The cover songs, Jeff remarked, "just happened to me. They each marked a time in my life." The most beautiful of these is his version of Leonard Cohen's "Hallelujah," which Buckley "came across while housesitting forafriend (before ashow). I played the song, got into her whis- key." He laughed, "Oh, it was horrible. I showed up at the gig completely sloshed, with tears in my eyes." Nina Simone's "Lilac Wine," Buckley felt, was always "a man's song, because it's usually the man who (screws) up, gets drunk. And I also wanted the band to be able to cover that territory as well; the intense ballad, the slow stuff." His justification? "Some kisses are slow, but you wouldn't miss a second of those, either." The final cover on "Grace," Ben- jamin Britten's exquisite "Corpus Christi Carol," Jeff recorded for along- time friend. "It was on a recording he gave me of operas and oratorios. I've lived a very transient life where I meet people, I hang onto them, I love them and then I have to leave," he explained. "He's somebody I still have and I love him, and so I decided to make 'Corpus Christi' as a gift." Buckley's "gypsy" childhood was spent with his mother (he met his father only once, at age eight) and his stepfa- ther. It was during that period that he fell in love with music. "It was just around in my house," he revealed. "My stepfather, though he wasn't a ... mu- sician, he was a car mechanic, loved buying records. He would bring them home to us. It was like Christmas twice a week." Leaving Jeff with an "eclecti- cism by default" were recordings of Jimi Hendrix, the Beatles, Janis Joplin, "West Side Story," George Carlin, Booker T and the MG's, and "lots of Stevie Wonder at one point." And so Jeff became a musician. Or he already was one. Whatever. "I never decided to become a musi- cian. I just did it," he declared. "It had nothing to do with anybody else, on this earth or off of it." His wandering childhood also pre- pared him for the eternal tour his life has become. "We've just come off of five straight months of touri ng, then we go on to two more. Then we have something I believe is called a break around Christmas. We'll tour the spring and summer straight through." His band, consisting of drummer Matt Johnson, bassist Mick Grondahl and guitarist Michael Tighe, is "a perma- nent lineup; a permanent love affair, I hope." Buckley plans to head back into the studio with plenty of new songs as soon as possible. He warned that people's preconceptions of his music "will to- tally deceive them" on his next effort. In case you missed their show at the Blind Pig last night - and you should feel really guilty if you did - the Brothers Grimm will be kicking up a storm tonight at Rick's, opening the Deterants. For the past couple of years, the Chelsea-based Brothers Grimm have been slugging it out in the clubs and bars, trying to make some headway in the tight local scene. Fortunately, they've recently been gaining some ground with their dirty, garagey rock 'n' roll. Like the Replacements, the Brothers Grimm uses classic rock and punk as a starting point for their music, which takes some sideroads into country, blues and even some jazz. Their album, "Fuel," captures both their fiery eclecticism as well as their loose,, relentless energy. Make it down to Rick's tonight; you shouldn't miss any chance to see a rock 'n' roll band this good. - Torn Erlewine Jeff Buckley used to play at Espresso on State. Oh the places you'll go! He expects less songwriting collabora- tions and coversongs. "The next album will be more me," he explained. For now, however, Buckley and band tour. And tour. "I wanted to come back to that massive coffeehouse in Ann Arbor (Espresso Royale on State Street, where he played in April), but now the album's out and we have to play bigger places. "But I do want to keep it as intimate as possible." Catch JEFFnBUCKLEYinthesemi- intimate Magic Bag Theater in fashionable Ferndale on Saturday, October 29 in an 18+ show. Doors open at 8p.m. Tickets are $10 in advance. Call (810) 544-3030. Mr. Buckley will also be playing the Ark on October 31; tickets for the Ark show are $5.50 in advance, doors open at 8 p.m. ON THE ROAD AGAIN: ROLLINS STOPS AT BORDERS Kermit the Frog Unpigged BMG Kidz Almost a full month before the Nir- vana Unplugged recordings are released comes the Muppets with their own stripped down "unpigged" concert. In- stead of acoustic versions of old Meat Puppets and Vasolines songs, Kermit and Co. decided to do an experimental tribute/concept record, covering 10pop standards with special guest stars rang- ing from the laid-back style of Jimmy Buffett to the country twang of Vince Gill. But it's the in-between song ban- ter that truly gives away the pain and inner turmoil of Kermit. Will he and Miss Piggy crawl out of their destruc- tive relationship? Their stormy relationship almost overshadows the music. Miss Piggy has long been the Courtney Love of the Muppet world, if Courtney Love was a giant slab of talking bacon; she's vio- lent, moody, and very possessive. At the same time, as her duet with Ozzy Osbourne proves, she's "Born to. Be Wild." Kermit spends half of the record fleeing from his raging Yoko, the other half vainly searching for his cherished swine. It's Kermit's eclectic selection of three minute power pop that betrays his conflicting emotions. "She Drives Me Crazy" is a call-and-response with Miss Piggy, addressing their Sid-and-Nancy feud in a way the Fine Young Canni- bals probably never intended. Don Henley joins the frog for a touching rendition of the old Muppet standby "(It's Not Easy) Bein' Green," perhaps knowingly echoing Cobain's sentiment of "all alone is all we are." Kermit, like Kurt, was always the one who shoul- dered the responsibility of being a spokesperson; not only was he a lonely frog, he was a role model for talking rats, humor-impaired bears, suicidal daredevil birds and Swedish chefs. A telling moment comes near the end, when fellow band member Floyd asks Kermit what he is doing. "Oh, I'm just playing an unplugged version of 'Wild Thing' on a ukulele," he replies in a melancholy tone. Floyd protests, Animal kicks in the drums (literally) and the Muppets rock. In this one mo- ment the pig is forgotten and all of Kermit's inner rage is released into a reborn classic that reeks of amphibian spirit. - Kirk Miller Henry Rollins was in the band Black flag from 1981 to 1986. Ten years later he is the singer in another rock band, the Rollins Band. He is also a writer. His latest book is called "Get in the Van: On the Road with Black Flag." It is about the years he sang in Black Flag. Like Rollins, the book is hard. Brutal. Funny. onight, Rollins begins his first-ever promotional writers' tour. At 7 p.m. he will be at Borders. He will read from his ook. He might sign some copies of his book, if you're lucky. Even if he doesn't sign books, you should buy a copy of "Get in the Van." It is one of the most honest rock books ever written, simply because it shows how crushingly dull life on the road actually is. -As Rollins rolls through the years in the van, he tells of the endless circle of seedy clubs, bad food, fights and - most frequently - sheer boredom, where small, cheap thrills are the only relief: "Just got back from another "installment on my tattoo. Tonight was fill-in. Wasn't that bad. Some parts were real tender, the needle in your back. You feel it in your stomach. Needles. Lots. Drinking coffee, dropped three Tylenol Extra Strength. I could use some extra strength." It's essential reading for anyone starting a rock band, thinking it's just a nonstop parade of whores and cocaine. - Tom Erlewine SUPER-FAST! CUT Reading &Study Thn. By 2/3, for GMAT 'ADE+MOE FREIE TIMIE! ..