It u&a
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Without A Net
Looking for some cheap and easy fun? Check out the University's very
own spectacular improv comedy troupe, Without A Net. They'll pick
your brain for some zany ideas and then blow you away with their own
wild imaginations. The group performs every Wednesday at 9 p.m. at
the U-Club in the Michigan Union. And it's well worth the $3 admis-
sion. For more information, call 763-3281.

Wednesday
October 23, 1996

5


Archers set sights on A2



By:Aaron Rennie
DailhTArts Writer
College rock heroes Archers of Loaf
bring their dual-guitared attack to Ann
4 rbor tomorrow night, playing at the
nd Pig with special guests Pipe and
81 Mulberry. Since their quirky and
explosive 1993
debut, "Icky
Metde," the lads PR
out of Chapel Hill, A
N.C., have
released records
and toured fre- At t
quently, last stop- Tic
ng in Ann Arbor
April 1995 for a gig at Rick's.
In a recent interview with The
Michigan Daily, the Archers' bassist,
Maot Gentling, talked about some of the
ups and downs of road life. "Some col-
lege towns we play, there's 15 really
interested people there, and other col-
lege towns we play are packed."
Elaborating on some of the difficul-
ties of touring, Gentling addressed
Archers of Loaf's ill-fated 1995 adven-
'e. opening for Weezer. "It wasn't as
such that we didn't like the Weezer
guys, but the opening bands get treated
like crap by the people who work (at the
venues). And as far as our music is con-
cerned, I don't really know if we're all
that compatible, at least live."
Luckily, Archers of Loof -
Gentling, singer/guitarist Eric
IAachmann, guitarist Eric Johnson and

drummer Mark Price - will not be
facing such problems on this tour, as
they are the headlining act. Gentling,
however, would have no problem
opening for a bigger band, as long as
the two bands were musical and inter-
personal kindred spirits. "Girls Against
Boys would be an
amazing band to
E V I E W open for," he
esof Loaf epand
ers o Loaf "They're really
morrow at 9:30 p.m. cool guys."
Blind Pig, 19 & over Even though
s are $6 in advance Archers of Loaf's

he
Toa
he
kel

albums have gar-
in indie and main-

nered rave reviewsi

stream rock circles, the band's popu-
larity has not yet skyrocketed, perhaps
due to the lack of a powerful video for
some of their excellent singles, like
1993's modern rock radio hits "Web in
Front" and "Wrong."
" haven't been all that happy with
any of the videos we've done," Gentling
said. "Most of them are not bad, but
usually we've come up with ideas and
they've all been thrown out at the last
minute."
Despite such setbacks, the band is
one hot commodity in the music indus-
try. After the release of its 1995 album,
"Vee Vee," on Alias Records, an
intense bidding war for the services of
Archers of Loaf ensued. Even
Madonna tried to land the group on her
Maverick label, checking out an

Archers show in New York that sum-
mer. "That was an interesting experi-
ence," Gentling noted. "The other guys
(got to meet her). The main consensus
that I got from everybody was (that
Madonna was) leathery." The band
subsequently decided to stay with
Alias, whose records are now distrib-
uted by the major label Elektra.
Archers of Loaf is also responsible for
one of the best album names of the
decade, for its 1993 EP, "Archers of Loaf
vs. The Greatest ofAll Time." Explaining
the inside joke, Gentling said, "Yeah, that
was pretty much based on something that
our guitarist Eric used to say all the time.
He really likes, Muhammed Ali and he
loves the way (Ali) used to run around
going, 'I'm the greatest of all time!' But
a lot of the time (Eric) wouldn't elaborate
on what he was the greatest at. We
thought that was funny."
The band's newest album, "All the
Nations Airports," was recorded earlier
this year in Seattle, all the way across
the country from its Chapel Hill base.
Gentling described the impetus for
Archers' decision to record in the
Pacific Northwest.
"We'knew we wanted to take a long
time on this album. We specifically
wanted not to do tracks over and over
and over again, but more to work on
tone and get all of our instruments
down right. We took over a day (just) to
get the drums sounding right. And also,
we just picked towns we wanted to hang

z : f~~
~ 2
Ik
.4

{-
ri
.


Archers (from left to right) Gentling, Bachman, Johnson and Price.

around in for that long, and Seattle was
one of them."
And although Seattle is significantly
bigger than Chapel Hill, the band did
run into some other musical celebrities.
"We saw some of the R.E.M. guys and
I almost bumped into the singer from
Radiohead," Gentling stated.
Gentling also joked about the possi-
bility of Archers' guitarist Eric Johnson
leaving the middle of the tour to join up
with Steve Vai and Joe Satriani for their

"G3" tour, the playing partners of the
guitarist's Grammy-winning and techni-
cal virtuoso namesake.
"Yeah, he's taking some time off for
that," laughed Gentling. "We were at a
cafe in Austin, Texas, where the other
Eric Johnson is from, so our Eric
Johnson takes out his wallet, pulls out his
driver's license - he's got a really good
deadpan sense of humor - looks at the
waitress and says, 'I'm Eric Johnson. I'd
like my meal for free,' and hands her his

license. She looks at it, hands it back,
and she's like, 'You know, you'd still
have to pay for your meal, even if you
were the real Eric Johnson."'
Finally, Gentling commented on the.
mindset of the band. "We don't have a.
musical mission. We're trying to enjoy,
ourselves. And we're trying to put out
music that we like. 'Not To Screw Ups
and Not To Suck': That'd be our musi-
cal mission. Other than that, we don't,
really have an agenda."


Tool screws
up on new
release
~00
Zool
,"Enima" is the failure of hard rock
As we know it today. Tool's new album
is the single biggest disappointment in
music for the past five years. Maybe
re.
the first single off of "Enima,"
"Stinkfist, is the record's best offering.
Singer Maynard Keenan's voice jour-
keys through its various courses on the
song, demonstrating his full range from
an- almost Gaelic-inflected melodious
tone to something that sounds like
Perry Farrell. While most of the music
is gxtremely repetitive, it's complicated
enough to maintain interest. The song
,.has the darkness and subtlety that
rked the band's two previous
endeavors as special.
Unfortunately, too much of the
album is boring post-grunge trash.
There is a preponderance of cranky,
strung out guitar and more or less flat
and uninteresting strong structures. But
instead of coming across as some sort
of artistic statement, the album simply
gives the impression that it is a lifeless
version of the band's past out-
St.
Individual songs do
have their moments.
"Eulogy" is interest-
ing, at least in parts.
Although most of the
song is boring and
trite, there is a passage
where the vocals are dis-
torted and the song has not
yet gone on for so long that it's
ring. Then there's about four and a
Walf useless songs of tedious tripe until
"Hooker With a Penis" inserts some
energy back into the album by being
completely opposite musically to what
has been coming through the speakers.
It's fast and full of yelling and at the
very least gets your attention. It in turn
is followed by a cool little organ bit
called "Intermission;" which is just
about the only fun thing on the album.
*ie Eier Von Satan" is equally differ-
ent, but in a more industrial vein. It's
good for shaking away the boredom the
first half of the album has been build-

Morris Dance Group thrills
with magical performance
Company brings acclaimed musical show to campus

What a bunch of Tools.


ing.
Tool has made a behemoth album
that crushes you in the worst possible
way. The spark of their skill is still evi-
dent, but it is buried under so much flab
that when the whole thing is considered,
you are forced to shake your head at
what might have been but, sadly, is not.
- Ted Watts
Ann Nesby
I'm Here for You
Perspective Records
I already knew homegirl could sing.
As lead singer for the acclaimed gospel
group Sounds of Blackness,
Ann Nesby has been
q tearing up gospel
songs with contem-
porary sounds for
years. Now, with
her debut release,
"I'm Here for
You," Nesby makes
her big splash in the
world of contemporary
music. May she never leave.
"I'm Here for You" is chock full of
potential great hits. She begins this 16-
cut greatness with the bass-lined, "Let
the Rain Fall," which she fills with her
God-blessed, alto pipes. Showing off
her vocal versatility, Nesby follows
"Let the Rain Fall" with "I'm Still
Wearing Your Name," in which she
sings about leaving her unfeeling sig-
nificant other for a real man. Here, we
have a much softer tone in keeping with
her R&B abilities. She even throws in a
little balladeering with "Lovely
Evening."
Nesby, approaching the status of the

middle-aged matron, knows her old
school, and she brings out that early
'80s R&B flava with "I'll Do Anything
for You" and some '70s dance vibe with
"In the Spirit." At the same time, Nesby
knows modern, as she shows with "Can
I Get a Witness" and "Hold On," two
fresh "soft-house" cuts.
Of course, Nesby hasn't left her spir-
itual influences behind. Much of her
music remains in tune with religious
themes, as various song titles imply.
This devotion to God comes to a head
with her final song, "Lord How I Need
You."
"I'm Here for You" is a great buy.
Ann Nesby's stirring singing, combined
with superb musical backgrounds and
background singing, pushes this LP to
the top of the must-get list. From the
moment you press play, Nesby will
guide you through a wide gamut of
black music - from R&B to gospel to
the ballad to '70s and '80s dance. In the
end, you'll return to your CD player,
drenched in sweat and utterly satisfied.
- Eugene Bowen

By Orit Greenberg
For the Daily
What happens when you mix Mark
Morris, 21 talented performers, some '
Brahms and a dash of Lou Harrison?
You get a performance that is not only
memorable, but magical.
Mark Morris, who started his own
company at the age of 23, served as
Director of Dance at the Theatre Royal
de La Monnaie in
Brussels frome
1988- 1991 . RE'
Performing across
M
the U.S. and at
major internation- D
al festivals, the
dance group made
its third appear-
ance in Ann Arbor last Wednesday night.
During previous visits, the company
entertained audiences with Morris'
acclaimed adaptation of "Dido and
Aeneas." This season, commemorating
the centenary of Johannes Brahms'
death, the company performed two
dances set to his music, "New Love
Song Waltzes" (Opus 65) and "Love
Song Waltzes" (Opus 52). "Grand
Duo," which was choreographed in
1993, was set to music by Lou Harrison
and closed the evening.
"Just about every dance I do starts
directly from a piece of music. Then I
get to try to discover the little secrets in
it and turn them into something that's

worth watching" Morris said.
Not only has Morris found the
secrets, but he has turned them into a
dance where it was as if you were
watching the music.
Equally, if not more important to the
success of the performance was the tal-
ent that was both on stage and in the pit.
The singers and musicians were superb
and the mature ensemble of dancers

VIEW
lark Morris
ance Group
Power Center
Oct. 16, 1996

performed in such
unison and exact-
ness that at times
it seemed as if you
were watching
one person.
In all the
pieces, the
dancers became

that are within his work, that the dance,
music and costumes are just the top of
it.
Mikhail Baryshnikov, who has per-,,
formed Morris' work for years said of
his dances, "Mark's pieces are soulful,
extremely personal and outrageously
honest ... very much like him." Added
to that, Morris' choreography can be
very sensual and sexy.
"Grand Duo" exemplifies this quali-
ty. It began with the dancers on a mys-'
teriously dark stage with only a small
beam of light going across overhead.
Slowly and seductively, Morris had the-
dancers move two fingers into the light
in a gesture that was almost hypnotic.
The two fingers were one with the vio-
lin that was being played simultaneous-
ly. It was mesmerizing. And it was
remarkable how he turned something"
so simple into such a complex and dra-'
matic thing.
The piece ended with the high ener-
gy polka section that had a Keith
Haring-esque movement quality to it.'
In a circle, the dancers rhythmically'
slapped and moved to the music in syn-
copation. It was like a game, and it-
seemed like so much fun. Morris added
multiple elements to this circle dance,"
such as facing and moving in different
directions. You could watch it for hours'
and not get bored.
Wednesday night was simply unbe--
lievable, three times over.

the instruments and the movements
they did mimicked and intertwined
with their accompaniment. Because of
Morris' eclectic dance background
including ballet, modern, flamenco and
,folk there is a wide variety of dance
styles among all of his works and with-
in them as well.
All three dances, although stylistical-
ly different and unique, were connected
by Morris' use of ground work, intri-
cate patterns, and beautiful partnering.
His use of repetition, change of direc-
tions and interchangeable male and
female partnering created a stage that
was intriguing to watch. There is so
much to capture from the rich layers


3

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