ECORDS
tintfd from Page a
Chyna
In The Night
FLX Records
ZERO STARS
"These guys just can't be for real," I
say. aloud to myself. I'm blasting the
Wet release by Chyna, a group that
ears to be completely oblivious to
the fact that their music bears a striking
resemblance to Winger. I smile and
crank the volume some more.
I bask in the glory of tunes that could
have been Poison outtakes, pretending
my hair is long and flying behind me
likethat guy inthe chair in those Maxell
commercials, when I hear my room-
mate wail out in protest, "Holy glam-
rock, Batman!"
Ilowly, my neighbors begin to no-
tee the presence of something decid-
edly non-alternative in their midst.
"These guys make Collective Soul
sound like Beethoven," one exclaims,
taking the pressure off me to come up
with witty remarks about how much
Chyna sucks.
Soon, my entire hall, having formed
an angry mob, begins hurling stolen
milk crates in my general direction, and
*nands that something slightly less
offensive, like that "Peaches" song, be
put on instead.
As the residence hall staff attempts
to quell the burgeoning anti-Chyna
movement, I can't help but feel a
sense of satisfaction, for everyone
else-had to listen and suffer along
with me.
Sadly, no press release was included
with "In The Night," but perhaps a
to would have explained how Chyna
re unearthed from a mid-'80s time
capsule by some resourceful archae-
ologist/record exec, who found a
bunch of leather-clad high school
dropouts and decided to release their
album in order to make the rest of the
FLX lineup sound stunning in com-
parison. I, for one, can't come up with
any other explandtion, and neither
can the residents of my hall, who are
fl reeling in the schlock-aftershock.
"In The Night" deserves its own per-
soral Ann Arbor noise pollution stat-
ufe. Other than that, it's not notable at
all.
-Dave Snyder
The Refreshments
Fuzzy, Fuzzy, Big & Buzzy
Mercury Records
The Refreshments are proof-positive
that sometimes appearances can be de-
ceiving. First off, the decidedly tacky
coverpainting ofaWorld Warllbomber
with the album title on the side would
mak you believe that The Refresh-
ments are a fat-riffed pop-metal band.
But waitturn the case over. The guys in
the band are sitting on the side of the
ad, dressed up in cowboy clothes,
thumbing for rides with their instru-
ment ptiled around them.
Take a look at the song titles -
"BlueCollarSuicide,""Banditos"and
"Suckerpunch." The second song is
called "European Swallow," which
you recognize as a reference from
"Monty Python & The Holy Grail."
OK, you think, these guys must be
funny country rockers, a la Dash Rip
ok and Southern Culture On the
ida. By the time you open up the
CD to see several photos of the guys
in huge sombreros, you don't know
what to think.
The closest guess would be the sec-
ond one, pegging The Refreshments
as funny country rock. Unfortunately,
they're too county to be called rock
and too rock to be called country, a
comination which ends up sounding
ighteningly similar to Hootie and
,is World Famous Blowfish. Which
is too bad, because the lyrics really
are pretty funny, for the most part.
; Ghost town on a Tuesday night/
That's okay, I'm feeling all right/It's
easier to grab a beer/Without a thou-
sandpeoplehere,"they sing in "Don't
Wanna Know." And that's one of the
more serious songs.
The trouble is, without interesting
music to back it up, the lyrics have a
*ndency to fall flat, blending in with
the sfeady, boring drone of the guitars.
The one song that works all the way
SUN
Continued from Page 5
bbvious concern and compassion for
her pupils.
Yet,thereal strength ofthe film comes
*om the surprisingly three-dimensional
writing. Aside from the aforementioned
intelligent characterizations, the sub-
plots, although a bit numerous, are not
entirely shallow. For example, despite
having a common goal, the Lolos
squabble and bicker in fits of jealousy
'and rage. The heat of the Australian
countryside serves as the perfect back-
d-op for this tension.
The success of"Race the Sun" is due
the fine presentation of the odds
Wainst the eight high school students.
Making the odds seem even greater are
the extremely human aspects of their
characters. These adolescents are nor-
tial people who embark on an extraor-
dinary task. If they can do it, so can
anyone. Of course, this is the central
message, and the movie certainly con-
veys it'- in a typical, feel-good way.
Granted, it may be unoriginal; but inthe
nd, who really cares as long as it's
njoyable?
The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, March 27, 1996 - 9
.. .. , .,, ......, ..............,..J .. _,. .. .._.
through is "Girly,"
moving tune in wh
structs his girlfriend
black and blue and
thread/Then we can1
it all over again." So
that The Refreshmer
the potential to rece
Unfortunately, "Fiz
Buzzy" just isn't it
time, guys.
Head Poppi
Through
Head Popping T
Binono Records
There's really n
expect when you f
Popping Through's
a rousing, quick- Most people get a kick out of their
ich the singer in- name, which is what intrigued this
: "Beat me 'til I'm reviewer to take a closer look. The
I'm hanging by a cover art is a bunch of scribbles and
get back up and do crude cartoons of babies in a bright
ngs like this show blue background, but what lies inside
nts definitely have is less messy, more mature and even
Ord a great album. brighter.
zy, Fuzzy, Big & Head Popping Through is a four-
Better luck next piece west coast band led by singer/
songwriter Nic Peroni. Peroni wrote
-Jeffrey Dinsmore and produced the entire album him-
self, which is impressive to start, es-
pecially for a newcomer. The songs
ng on "Head Popping Through" are var-
ied, yet heldtogetherby Peroni's abil-
ity to paint a picture for the listener
through using music, his lyrics and his own
voice.
The disc starts with a song called
"Lonely In Your Arms," which is very
o telling what to Beatles-esque, with its acoustic-laden
irst pick up Head guitars and Lennon-likevocals. Peroni
self-titled debut. uses a wide vocal range on the album,
making him sound at times like Bono
of U2 (on "I Do") or Sting (check out
"Said Sail To The Sun"). A lot of the
music resembles some of the things
Sting has done, also. The disc is a
mixture of rock and country-tinged
pop.
"Edsel" is one of the many stand-
outs. It is a very catchy country-pop
song which drives from beginning to
end. "She's Lost My Mind" is probably
the most ambiguous song on the disc,
with a story of love told through the
guise of cities, states, countries and
names.
Many of the songs are like "She's
Lost My Mind," in that they tell a story
which Peroni abstractly lays out for us.
Songs like "The Wedding Cake" and
"Tropic of Cancer" give the disc a dif-
ferent feel, with a little experimenta-
tion. The lyrics really shine throughout
the disc, although the music is not too
shabby, either.
Overall, the lush melodies, variety
of songs and brilliant lyricism on
"Head Popping Through" make this
disc a really good find. And hope-
fully, with some notice, Nic Peroni
and Co. might pop through to bigger
and better things.
Head Popping Through will be
performing tonight at the Magic Stick
upstairs of the Majestic Theatre, lo-
cated at 4140 Woodward in Detroit.
Doors open at 9 p.m. Call (313) 833-
9700 for more info.
- Colin Barlos
POP oUIZ
1. How many times have you missed this semester?
a) None.
b) Fewer than five times.
c) 1 800 CALL ATT.
d) Where's Dylan?
2. Someone calls you collect, using 1 800 CALL ATT. What happens?
a) You accept because you and the person calling are automatically
entered to win an internship on Beverly Hills, 90210*
b) You accept because it always costs less than 1 800 COLLECT.:
c) You accept because he/she might be Dylan.
d) All the above.
3. What's the best thing to do while watching Beverly Hills, 90210*?
a) Study.
b) Listen to David's rap song.
c) Hope for a guest appearance by Dylan.
d) Call a friend collect using 1 800 CALL ATT (you might win the Beverly Hills,
90210® internship and listen to David's rap song in person).
4. You have to call your parents for money. Select the most appropriate scenario:
a) You use 1 800 CALL ATT because you know you'll get more money
out of them.
b) You use 1 800 CALL ATT because that way you'll get another chance
to win the Beverly Hills, 90210® internship.
c) You're doing it to get a bigger TV set.
d) All the above.
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