I S~~-edkWauaff w Wednesday January 22, 1997 Sounds of Blackness wraps up MLK Day By Eg"*. Bowen Daily Ats Writer To those in Hill Auditorium on Monday night old enough to remember, it was like being sucked back in time to the Power Center on Martin Luther Kin Jr. Day '95. To those for who have never received a Sounds of Blackness expe- R rience, it was a night of unforget- table song and spir- it. m 16 Closing the main part of the 1997 MLK Day celebrations, "Music for Martin" was everything this year that it was two years ago - and then some. Opening the night of celebration was the University Gospel Chorale. With 65 plus members, the University choir - decked in their traditional blue robes with Kente cloth trim - brought the house down with their musical journey down the path of African American history, beginning with the spirituals of the African slave. As songs like "Swing Low Sweet Chariot" rang out, some choir mem- bers quietly acted out the lifelong suf- fering of slaves. It was of great signif- icance that African American University students - future engi- neers, executives and other American leaders - lived for just a short while the lives of their ancestors - people who weren't seen E V I E W as people and who risked their lives Sounds of just to learn to Blackness read. Hill Auditorium Members' per- Jan. 20,1997 formance of songs like "Freedom over Me" and the famed "We Shall Overcome," and the lively and ener- gizing choreography proved the University Gospel Chorale to be one the University's premier ensembles. They demonstrated that they don't need a Grammy award to show how amazingly entertaining their presenta- tions can be. But of course, a Grammy couldn't hurt. And with one such award under their belts, the nine-singer traveling ensemble of the Sounds of Blackness took center stage to bring their unique style of educational, spiritual, uplifting music to a hungry Hill Auditorium crowd. Opening with the heavily African- influenced "Harambee," from their debut album, "Evolution of Gospel," Sounds of Blackness came ready to please. Following with their most well- known song, "Optimistic," and then with "I Believe," a highly popular song from the group's third release, "Africa to America: Journey of the Drum," Sounds of Blackness sang of an African American hope for a better life and faith that some day freedom will ring for all people. But all was not just upbeat. Trumpeter Larry Sims brought tears to the eyes of some as he instrumentalized MLK's favorite song, "Precious Lord." "God Cares" was a most uplifting song whose instrumentation took the audi- ence on a soul-searching ride, and the R&B-flavored testimonial "Love Will Never Change" was equally unforget- table. The aptly named "Crisis" chronicled both the suffering that black Americans have felt and the sadness that is still forthcoming. Its refrain said it all: "We're in a crisis / Can we fight to sur- vive? / Hold on my brother / Sister don't cry." Sounds of Blackness, also per- formed a remake of the O'Jays hit "Love Train," and they gave their debut performance of "Spirit," : the first single from their forthcoming album, "Time for Healing." It is set for release in March. The inherent beauty of a Sounds of Blackness concert is the variety of African American musical genres pack- aged together. From R&B to calypso to rap to gospel to reggae, Sounds of Blackness truly offered a varied menu of ... sounds of blackness. The 10th annual University celebra- tion of MLK's life and legacy came to a brilliant close, thanks to the combined efforts of a spirited Gospel 'Chorale and Sounds of Blackness. "Music for Martin" was a musical salute to everyone - Sojourner Truth, Malcolm X, Barbara Jordan, James Baldwin, Mahatma Gandhi, Cesar Chavez, Medgar Evers, Harriett Tubman and the many unknown slaves, sharecroppers, pro- testers and civil rights martyrs - who stand as symbols of strength, courage and determination against impossible odds of hatred, bigotry and apathy. sYt:;":R't." : ;:';a:'.ut,;{;?.:;:;:t;.;;;:.;:,{{:::::{::?}}?;;{.}k :" ">:"}:,r?:;::">:.?;.}Y; ts,;.} .: ", ;.... "rwtr ry?:;:..:"}+., }}Y . . v. r, , tv{..","{. L v S d { .{ ', ::: rY' {{ f' 3.' ,tf' Y r 3+:ta;<>.x:,. . {rr,+,: }:::.h:?"to:$% r . i :$ ... .. r,..;F {{. .:.?":: s:::: ter: :, 3.::::. r. {.;}:: i:;'$r{:;?:?;:;:y:?;"}}. } i ".tt? ;s? '"Y}i} ,fr f : - ' ;cF..;; 5. {\:;; t }!: .' " , ? ":{?-ct: r.: x;:?:":: "".,<{.;'.:"" :;::;":.:.: - Yr. .?r. ;{.::{t.:...}::::..,::: }: ::;:: v:r:::::::?t . +ti* .: "-$x " att". ".t. :".s}."?"" " '. 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Who hasn't, at one time in their life, read "Ripley's Believe It Or Not" in the comics section of the Sunday paper and found themselves swinging like a R pendulum between "believe it" and "not?" L a w r en c e Weschler delves into this interplay between the strange-but-true and the so-strange-it-can't-possibly-be-true in his latest book, "Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder" which was a finalist for the Pulitzer Prize in the category of General Nonfiction. Weschler read excerpts from his book to an enchanted audience at Shaman Drum on Monday night. The book is a magical, celebratory tour through the Museum of Jurassic Technology in Los Angeles - a Natural History museum that definitely explores the underbelly of science that most museums dare not touch. The museum proudly displays such exhibits as a horn that is said to have grown on the head of a woman, the eye of a nee- dIe containing a sculpture of the Pope meticulously woven from thread, and a display encouraging sick children to inhale duck's breath. David Wilson, the curator of the museum, details the origin and meaning of each of his displays with the same matter-of-fact earnestness as any narra- tor of a PBS nature special, making it difficult for Weschler, and us, to disbe- t lieve. But really. Duck's breath? How can any of this be true? In his narrative, Weschler combines a sense of wonder with a healthy dose of journalistic doubt. The first section of "Mr. Wilson's Cabinet of Wonder" describes and traces the history of the museum itself; the V I E W second section is an exploration of Lawrence similar museums Weschler and of the human Shaman Drum capacity to marvel; Jan.20,1997 the third section is given over to Weschler's footnotes, elaborate tan- gents into the weird that make the book itself into a sort of "cabinet of wonder" In addition, it causes us to question our beliefs in other areas of science. How odd are dinosaur bones, really? Does inclusion in a museum necessarily equal scientific validity? On Monday night, Weschler read from the highly amusing opening pages of the book, describing his first visit to Mr. Wilson's museum. He read with an inflection of just the right amount of irony, punctuating the reading by rais- ing his eyebrows and shaking his head during the descriptions of some of the more fantastic exhibits. It seemed that Weschler still had a hard time believing what he is reading. This is only the latest in a series of books that Weschler has been writing about people who are seized, some- time during the course of their lives, with revelations that cause them to ditch normality and follow a bizarre dream. During the question-and- answer period, Weschler was asked about what would make a man like Bush Razorblade Suitcase Trauma With Bush's second release, the grat- ing and caustic "Razorblade Suitcase," the British grunge band continued its bottom-dwelling trend of feeding off alternative bile and churned out anoth- er batch of vexatious Nirvana-imitating tunes. This time around, Bush's aspiration to be the Nirvana substitute goes far beyond the grating power chords and bogus angst that littered their multi- platinum debut "Sixteen Stone." For "Razorblade Suitcase," Bush hired indie-noise producer Steve Albini, who coincidentally also recorded "In Utero," Nirvana's final studio record. Albini's trademark drum sound and raucous guitars are prevalent throughout "Razorblade Suitcase;" giving it a simi- lar, yet also very different feel from the Nirvana record. The Nirvana connection goes on and on: From the songs about suicide, pain and drugs sung by Gavin Rossdale's irritating moan to the heavy use of crosses and religion in the video from the first single, "Swallowed," just like Nirvana's first "In Utero" single, "Heart-Shaped Box." To top it off, in the liner notes, Rossdale thanks "Courtney," most likely Cobain's widow, Courtney Love, who Rossdale has befriended since Cobain's suicide. But the Nirvana connection ends trollable production of the record,Bush- falls quite short of Nirvana's groi~hd- breaking music. From the noisy noth- ingness of the album's opener "Personal Holloway" to the terrible drone of the last track "Distant Voices," "Razorblade Suitace" bores, frustrates and aggravates. Most of the recc melds together in an indistinguishabe pile of sludge with little melody and few catchy riffs. "Swallowed" is one of the few excep- tions, as one of the more enjoyable Bush songs to date. Rossdale's overdia- matic crooning fits well with the whiny guitar and melody of the song, but nev- ertheless, good sludge is still sludge. But after the brief "Swallowed" oasis, "Razorblade Suitcase" falls back to " neverending drone with the noisy, ' Utero" inspired "Insect Kin" and "A Tendency to Start Fires." Rossdale's solo spotlight "Straight No Chaser" will please all - the "Glycerine" fans, but again the album regresses back to its monotonous drone immediately with "History" in which Rossdale sings, "I'm always a little late," and "Piss on my grave;' two of the more intelligent, or at least sensiv lyrics on the record. Even with Bush's meager attempts to be Nirvana, something tells me the world won't be lucky enough to have Rossdale emulate Cobain's demise. Just to be safe, you might want to keep him away from the shotgun. Then again, you might not. - Brian A. Gnatt See RECORDS, Page 10 Lawrence Weschler reads at Shaman Drum on Monday. JENNIFER BRADLEY-SWI FT/Daily Mr. Wilson devote his life to a muse- um that straddles the line between sci- ence and fantasy. "Look at me! I was a serious writer. What happened to me?" Weschler shot back, adding that he teaches a class in "The Fiction of Non-fiction,' and that every good journalist realizes the half- fiction in what he writes. Weschler maintains a high respect for the subjects of his books. "I try to stay open to weird subjects,' he .;aid. And, still shaking his head in amaze- ment, he added, "I guess I think Mr. Wilson is some kind of saint, in a way." Bush looks pretty for the camera. MARTY'S...IN APPRECIATION OF THEIR CUSTOMERS GOES DUTCH TREAT WITH A Jan. 22nd through 25th OPEN Wed., Thur., Fri. 9:30-9, Sat. 9:30-6:00 PRICES DROP EACH DAY! FALL & WINTER MERCHANDISE FROM FAMOUS MAKERS - Austin Reed, Corbin, Joseph Abboud, Sero, Enro, Byford, Pendleton, Raffi, Tallia. SUITS Sport Coats Original OrigInal Price Wed Thur Fri Sat Price Wed Thur Fri Sat 350 279 263 245 209 250 199 188 175 149 375 299 281 263 225 265 212 199 186 172 395 316 296 277 237 275 219 206 193 169 425 339 319 298 276 310 248 233 217 186 450 359 338 315 289 325 259 244 228 199 Alterations included Wed. & Thur. and Fri. Alterations at cost Sat. only. EARLY BIRD DISCOUNTS OF 10% ON SPRING 1997 MERCHANDISE Sweaters " Dress Shirts - Polar Fleece * Sport Shirts F.l LI I I _ _ __ 17 a