Women's Glee Club Annual Fall Concert The Women's Glee Club and the Harmonettes will be performing their annual fallconcert featuring a cornucopia of pieces, including "A Ceremony of Carols" by Benjamin Britten. The concert begins at 8 o'clock on Saturday night at Hill Auditorium. School of Music Dean Lynne Aspnes will be playing the harp. Tickets are $5 for students, $7 adults. Friday November 22, 1996 8: ,When 'Chenry Pi~e' gets a little stale W(v Wrrant fights to stay alive in the alternative music erap}_ i. r .< mu.N.rr By _lmn A. Gnatt tiArts Editor Nrvana's power chords and Pearl Jam' genuine lyrics may have thrown } '80!i"air bands like Warrant, Cinderella and Motley Crue off the charts, but altrntive music hasn't killed them all ye ome are still hanging on to their maggr label ties by an unraveling thread, buL thers like Warrant have moved on to underground indie labels, completing the flip-flop that took place in the music world at the beginning of the decade. For Warrant, the days of "Cherry Pie" are long gone - no more big hair, no more stadiums, no more spraying girls with firehoses on MTV and no more big bucks from major record labels. In reality, many of the '80s hard rock groups traded places with the top-selling alternative bands of today. In the post- grunge era, Warrant calls indie label CMC International P home, along with L.A. Guns, Yes and a few other hard Saturd rock buddies. Warrant has with LA. Guns andE R day Ba playing." After the reality of Warrant's situa- tion set in, the band went through a complete facelift. Members cut their once poofy hair, grew their sideburns and traded the torn acid-washed jeans E V I E W for some more respectable wear. Warrant The music has , doors open at 8 p.m. changed signifi- At Harpo's in Detroit cantly too, with the ng Tango Tix: $13.50 songs taking more of an Alice In released two albums on the label, the most recent being "Belly to Belly" which hit stores last month. With original members Jani Lane (vocals), Erik Turner (guitar) and Jerry Dixon (bass), Warrant is carrying on, facing the fact that the days of selling out arenas around the world are over. The band still hits the road playing clubs, bringing classics like "Heaven," "Down Boys," "I Saw Red," "Uncle Tom's Cabin" and of course, "Cherry Pie" to its fans. "It's a struggle," Lane admitted in a telephone interview with The Michigan Daily. "But we just get out there and play everywhere where they have elec- tricity. and do that street-level kind of marketing for the band, and as long as the people keep coming out, we'll keep Chains or Stone Temple Pilots feel as opposed to the standard hair band shtick. Nevertheless, radio and MTV aren't interested in the new Warrant, and the band has been unsuccessful breaking into the mainstream. "It's very difficult to get radio play right now with the stigma that sur- rounds the band, although the band sounds much different than it did back in the 'Dirty Rotten' and 'Cherry Pie' days," the 32-year-old Lane said. "I don't think bands like us will get played until it becomes a little less fashionable to hate us, and the alternative thing becomes a little more passe and redun- dant, which it's on its way to." Lyrically, Lane has been reaching deeper into his soul to write more per- sdnal songs for Warrant and for an acoustic-based solo project he's been working on. He said when Warrant was on the Columbia record label for its debut "Dirty Rotten Filthy Stinking Rich," and the "Cherry Pie" and "Dog Eat Dog" albums, he wasn't allowed to write some of the darker songs which he would have liked to write. Now that the band's image has changed, he said he's been able to write more songs from his heart. "I had a lot of positive and a lot of negative things happen, but I was never allowed to talk about the negative things, because that was a no-no," Lane said. "We were supposed to be a happy hair band from California." Even though Warrant is still cranking out the tunes, it would be difficult to top the double-platinum success of 1990's "Cherry Pie" -- the song, the video and the album. The steamy video featured model Bobbi Brown (who Lane later married) being sprayed by band mem- bers with a firehose, having a piece of cherry pie dropped in her lap and suck- ing on her finger. With lots of juicy t & a shots, the video epitomized the sex- laden hard rock video. "'Cherry Pie' sort of became our nemesis," Lane said. "I took it very tongue and cheek, and it was supposed Warrant in 1996 with frontman Jani Lane ( to be fun and not taken seriously, and it was supposed to be bubblegum-pop- metal-rock whatever you want to call it - a fun song. "Of course we were marked as sexist pigs after the video," he continued. "I knew we weren't. I'm very respectful towards women. I've never been that kind of a person. The video was sup- posed to be funny, and it was taken (to be) very sexist. For God's sake, I ended center). up marrying the girl that I was suppo - edly treating like a chauvinistic pi-. in the video. We're divorced now, but t because I'm a sexist pig." Success or not, Lane said he Warrant plan to chug on, doing W they like doing best - making nmus. "Whatever we did, we did it well, sore need to apologize," he said. "It wa'jp back then, and it's a bit passe now; > you move on and try to stay relevaiI Warrant during the band's heyday. I " Dunmes still 'Mimn Mmm'good By Mark Feldman Daily Arts Writer Trying to live up to the success of an album is nearly as difficult as having a successful album in the first place. The Crash Test Dummies, still best known fortheir 1994 album "God Shuffled His Feet" and its top-10 single "Mmm Mmm Mmm Mmm," are doing just that this year, having recently released the follow up album "A Worm's Life" and embarking on a world tour that hits Detroit tonight. How does the new album compare to its predecessor? "This record is more aggressive," singer Brad Roberts said in an interview with The Michigan Daily. "The drums are mixed louder, there's more guitar, less synthesizer, the pro- duction is less slick. I'm very happy with it." One thing that hasn't changed, though, is the fascinating array of topics covered in his lyrics. Roberts' musings on animals, science, unusual children and inanimate objects are as present as ever. "I'm trying to avoid writing about the more cliched subjects in pop music, because I'm interested more in bending the rules. So ani- _ mals tend to creep in, Roberts said. "I like to give the point of view of a narrator rather than an outsider" At the F And while sever- Basement Arts By Emily Achenbaum For the Daily Basement Arts' latest student production, "No Man's Land" by Harold Pinter, may sound like a play with minimal appeal to college students: It's the story of an old man who is about to die. But don't brush this play off. If you have ever had out-of-town friends wear out their welcome when crash- ing in your dorm room or if you have ever been unsure about your future, you can relate to this play. "No Man's Land" is the story of Hirst (Rob Sulewski), an old, rich man who invites a guest, Spooner (James Ingagiola), into his house for a drink. Hirst has two servants (Mandy Politziner and Jeff Steiger) that he is completely dependent on, giving them more power over him then he has over them. Spooner is poor and Hirst tries to convert him into being P I another one of his servants, a plan that ~)N goes awry. N Rob Sulewski, who stars as Hirst, has Th previous experience working on Pinter's s dramas. Last January he was involved At the Arena Theat with a production of "The Pinter Review." Sulewski then came across "No Man's Land" and introduced the play to Basement Arts. Though not Pinter's most frequently performed piece, the theme of finality, with appropriately hilarious moments, stuck out to Sulewski. Sulewski also has been credited as director of "No Man's Land," which is only a quarter correct. The four members of the cast have been sharing the responsibility of advising each other. "This is a different type of experimental theater; no direc- tor," Sulewski explained. Instead, the four actors have been equally critiquing each other, creating a group direction of the piece. "It's like the audience is always there, even in rehearsal," Sulewski said. "The input we are getting from one another is helpful. We are getting specific comments." Sulewski has found being a director as well as an actor in the play a welcomed challenge. Usually seated in the director's chair, he finds it a nice break to get up on stage. However, the tackles Pinte; dual role brings more pressure. "To a certa extent, a direcr can hide during a performance," Sulewski said. On centcr stage, however, there's no place to hide. Suiwski has found it difficult to be in a scene and then be able to separate himiil f enough from it to step back and critique 4, but he says tie experience has been rewarding and has had a positive imipact on the cast and the production. With the experimentation in this play being its method of self-directing, the cast has chosen to keep the productio'nes true to Pinter as possible. There is no cutting of lins or stage directions. "We're trusting Pinter implicitly," " Sulewski with a smile, his respect for the playwright appar- ent. REVIEW o Man's Land rough Saturday at 7 p.m. turday matinee at 4 p.m. er (in Frieze Bldg.), Free. The cast is also explaing the themes Pinter laid out as much as possible. Sulewski explained that the play has overtones of "finality and finishedness." He feels the play addresses issues we will all face, if we don't already face them now. "This play gets to the point of existen but then there's more then that," Sulew. es Benjamin Darvill, Ellen Reid, Brad Roberts, Mitch Dorge and Dan Roberts. RoyE and his experiences as the source. "I often get (my lyrics) from a conversa- tion, a book I've just read, a quote from the news on TV, or a commercial. I take the fragments I write down and look for a theme. You have to be real critical when you write lyrics, and keep going until it's good," he said. E V I E W As far as the Crash Test music itself is con- Dummies cerned, both "A Worm's Life" and Tonight at 7 p.m. 'God Shuffled His al Oak Music Theatre Feet" are full of instantly appealing melodies and studio tricks reminiscent more of '80s and ear- lier British pop such as XTC and Squeeze than of modern rock. "We have become studio freaks because of XTC," Roberts said, "which is very much in opposition to the whole 'alternative' thing." In fact, the Dummies regularly cover XTC's "The Ballad of Peter Pumpkinhead" in concert. But their influences are not limited to XTC. One of Roberts' first favorite childhood songs was Charlie Daniels' "Uneasy Rider," and he became a certified mem- ber of the Kiss Army at age 12; it was none other than the legendary Ace Frehley that inspired him to learn gui- tar. The Crash Test Dummies are an eccentric outfit, and that eccentricity should come out very well in concert. There ought to be a place for a band like this in any time, and a place beyond that of a one hit wonder. said. The play is not plot-heavy or too serious. He promi~ps moments of hilarity and quite an ending. "(The ending) is really quite a piece of gold. I don't itt to give it away," Sulewski said. He explained that the ali- ence will have a good time because it will enjoy what is lbeg portrayed. He hopes the audience will walk away thinkng about its own situation and its own purpose. "TIte play aes- n't give answers, but better articulated questions," Sule*ki said. At some point, everyone wonders what they are going t),o with themselves, and then they move on. The interestingI in "No Man's Land" is that Hirst has done it all, he is a-6 man, possibly dying, who has reached the end of his lifeOut he still has the last part of his life to live out. 'No MW 's Land" asks what should be done when there's reay noting left to do. Folk artist Curtis returns to Ark on Saturday al internet newsgroups exist solely for the purpose of finding the hidden sources of Crash Test Dummies lyrics in obscure mythology or other unlikely places, Roberts often uses only himself By Eugene Bowen Daily Arts Writer A good friend of mine once described contemporary folk artist Catie Curtis as a white Tracy Chapman. Students have a chance to feel the power of Curtis' diverse messages when she returns tomorrow to the Ark. Curtis, a social worker prior to the release of her first PR album "From Years to Hours,' said in a recent interview with The Michigan Daily that she "found the work pretty satisfying, doing home visits with the elderly. It was an opportunity to provide some pretty con- crete support systems for frail, low- m L income, elderly people. But tohe whblk time, the goal has really been to music whe* I fe I was ready. Music E V I E W has been the cOn- atie Curtis stant threed throughout my Saturday at 8 p.m. life." at The Ark Cri ecie Tickets are $11. Curtis derid how she gets ideas for the socially conscious leanings her music oftentimes takes, saying, "I get a lot of material from really perso See CURTIS, Pam w;. Highlights from the 313-99-MUSIC - Urphans of the stonn a silent film classic with live orchestral accompaniment by the . .." ,n r7 .