8 The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, February 10, 1998 6 Welcome to Breaking Records, a weekly collection of reviews of the music stry's new releases. Look forBreaking Records everv Tuesday in Daily Arts. IHA ' S SOLO DEBUT IS NO SMASH Sandler's lungs catc eke Adam Sandler, a rap dma, and a bunch of'80s icon, tdthem up. What do you get? s dtrack to Sandier's new m+ F Wedding Singer. -4ie movie takes place in 1985 the-music contained within it is m early '80s new wave. This collecti reshing, though, because it's nc old '80s songs you hear or ifs flashback hour. pon throwing the disc into player, y' magically t formed int youngster a The While listeni Wedding the Psyche Singer Furs, I thin Maverick putting those Reviewed by chute pants Daily Arts Writer on. As Billy Colin Bartos tells us whata day it is f 'Wedding' shy old tune The saying goes that one should never judge a book by its cover, and I agree. But the adage does- n't say anything about CDs. And in fact, a close look at the cover of James Iha's "Let It Come Down" reveals a great deal about the artist and the album. First, it features a photo of lha standing alone, which is appropriate, as this is the first solo album from the Smashing Pumpkins lead guitarist. More important, he's looking not at the camera but down, his long, ragged mane of dark hair obscur- ing his face. The pose seems calculated to portray Iha as sensitive, thoughtful and introspective - an image reinforced on the album by his lovestruck lyrics and soft, high vocals. The border of the photograph is a bright canary yellow, the simple scheme and sunny color coin- ciding with the songs' straightforward pop sound. The hue also creates a vaguely retro feel, reminscent of '70s icons like Big Bird and the your ou're rans- o a gain. ng to delic k of para- back Idol a nice or a Thompson Twins. This is when music was fun, when MTV actually played videos! Besides all this '80s madness, you get a silly new Adam Sandler song and Ellen Dow, the old lady from the movie, joining the Sugarhill Gang for their hip- hop classic "Rapper's Delight." Plus, the Presidents of the United States of America do a cover of the Buggies' "Video Killed The Radio Star," and it's the first time PUSA hasn't sucked. Although you probably won't ask any- one to sing these treasures at your wed- ding, you can sing along anytime. So grab your Pogo Ball and get hoppin' and pick up this great collection. You're not getting any younger without it. Willie Stargell-era ** "White Wedding," I'm looking for the girl in my class with the big hair and the leg warmers. Is it all coming back to you? Listen to the Police and the Smiths. You'll be searching for your dog collar, sleeveless t-shirt and blue-colored hair $pray. Culture Club, David Bowie, the James Iha Let It Come Down Virgin Reviewed by Daily Arts Writer Anders Smith-Lindall iPittsburgh Pirates. Similarly, the music faint- ly echoes that decade's slightly syrupy singer-song- writers like Cat Stevens and James Taylor. And to be hon- est, there's not much more to the album than that. Musically, though Iha and producer Jim Scott augment the simple melodies with flourishes of horns, strings, organ and even steel guitar, the songs are almost uni- he tells us that "love is a falling star" and in "Winter," states that "love will carry me over land and over sea. In recent months, rumors have circulat- ed that Iha's album would have a distinct country influence, since he is quick to admit his admiration for country-rock fore- fathers like Neil Young and Gram Parsons. The pres- ence of producer Scott (whose resume includes work with Tom Petty and Whiskeytown), steel guitarist Greg Leisz and electric guitarist Neal Casal seemed to suggest the same. But the closest Iha comes to sounding like his heroes is an occasional, passing resemblance to late- '80s Eagles. It is difficult to imagine "Let It Come Down" achieving much commercial success. There are no instantly memorable singles here that might latch onto MTV or top 40 radio for any extended period of time. And while lha's management and record label is banking on his Pumpkins connections, fans of that band won't find any of their usual heavy, dis- torted electric riffs here. The market for this album is pop fans, but they formly bland. The sound is inoffensive but ulti- mately uninteresting. The lyrics are similarly mediocre, veering occa- sionally into melodrama. Like most frustrated poets, Iha falls back on predictable topics and cliched imagery. "The sound of love is oceans far away," he sings on "Sound of Love"; in "Jealousy" can certainly find similar-sounding but immeasur- ably better fare from the likes of Freedy Johnston, Matthew Sweet, and even Iha's pal (and Scratoi. Records co-founder) Adam Schlesinger, wio guests on piano and bass but is better known for his bands, Ivy and Fountains of Wayne. in all, Iha's first solo effort is hard to get excit ed about, whether positively or negatively. "Let It Come Down" is far from great but won't be among the worst things you hear all year - it's just very; very average. 'Live' gives good Face Sure, a live album sounds like some- Thing that Aerosmith might do, but that didn't stop Face to Face from finally Tecording one of their own. It should- n't stop all you punks out there from buying it, either. The idea for a Face to Face live record is one of the better things to come along since sliced bread. Through the band's seven long years of existence, Face to Face has proved itself an incredible band not only on record, but also through steady touring and incredibly powerful live shows. This record was put on tape at two such performances in J.A1 at the Roxy - both were shows $olol out, and both held on the same higtt. The album is true to its name - the live sound is perfect. If any over-dub- bing was done in post-production, it's 1 , Funkdoobiest's third CD proves far from troubled Face to Face Live Vagrant/lady Luck Reviewed by Daily Arts Writer Gabe Fajuri not evident on the final product. The way it was played is the way you hear it, and as is the case with most Face to Face shows, the way it was played was extremely well. Unlike many live releases, you lead singer. Song selection on the disc ranges in vintage from the first record, "Don't Turn Away," to the band's most recent, self-titled long-player and a couple of unreleased tracks as well. Songs like "Pastel," "I Want" and "You've Done Nothing" will keep old-school fans happy, just as the inclusion of last year's minor radio hit "I Won't Lie Down" will catch the attention of newer fans. Technitcally, none of the material is new, although one song, "Not For Free," has only been released once before, on a limited-edition picture disc, and is almost never played live. Also included on the record is a competent cover of "Telling Them," as a tribute to punk godfa- thers Social Distortion. The band is releasing this record in anticipation of their upcoming tour with The Reverend Horton Heat, which kicks off in late March. What better way to hype your live act than to put out a great live record? "Live" is all the proof you need to tell you that your punk rock dollars are being put to good use when you're at the show, be it on your stereo or at the club. The Latin/Puerto Rican culture has always been an integral part of hip-hop music, but lately there has been a renaissance of quality material courtesy of artists like Cypress Hill, The Beatnuts and Hurricane G. Not to bie left out, Buzztone/RCA's Funkdoobiest returns with "Troubleshooters." Unlike Funkdoobiest's previous two albums, Son Doobie and DJ Ralph M. play up the band members' Puerto Rican heritage to the fullest. They've dropped their "Pornstar" image, and in rein- venting themselves, they may have secured a future in rap music. "Troubleshooters" is pure hip-hop. Son's brash, off- beat style of rapping forms a strange unison with Ralph's stripped-down production. It's a little disorienting, but is fun to listen to, nonetheless. The radio-friendly "Anthem" is a treat for those who like rappers who per- form their rhymes over classic songs (a la Puffy), but songs like the barebones "Oy6 Papi" appeal to the fans of hardcore B-boy music. Those new to Funkdoobiest or Latin rap may find Son's instantaneous switching between Spanish and English hard to understand, but Son's context is always clear, regardless of the language. There are also quality guest stars peppered through the album, like Daz Dillinger on the salsa-styled "Papi Chulo," Kam on "Jam On It" remake "Act On It," and 7** Hurricane G. on the haunting Funkdoobiest "Doobie Knows," along with the trademark sounds of superpro- Troubleshooter ducers Ski and the Beatminers. Buzztone/RCA But the useless interludes aren't. Out of the five interludes Reviewed by that were interjected, only the Juauan Witeams freestyle rap in "Alley" is worth listening to. But these really don't detract that much from the album. Funkdoobiest has rebounded very nicely from their dismal sophomore album and is showing signs of liv- ing up to the potential they showed on its noteworthy debut. In fact, "Troubleshooters" may yet become one of the definitive albums in the Latin hip-hop canon. Ma Rainmstein CD delivers anti-Valentine wq hear everything that's important, from the subtlest bass fill, to the incessant chanting of the crowd and a couple of mistakes, too. There aren't many, though. 'The main problem with the disc is Trever Keith's voice. He's never been the most polished singer in the world, and it shows through on the record a few times, which gets to be annoying. I guess that proves how "live" record really is. After all, this is punk rock - you should expect a less that operatic They're German. East German. Their singer was an Olympic swimmer. They've been on the soundtracks to "Lost Highway" and "Mortal Kombat.",, They are Rammstein. Be moderate- C* ly on guard. It's weird listening to a band that Rammstein sings in a language you don't Sehnsucht speak. The vocals are more clearly a slash musical element because they liter- Reviewed by ally represent little or nothing to Daily Arts Writer you. Ted Watts Till Lindemann has interesting pipes; sort of a mix between the singers of Megadeth, Type 0 Negative and Pantera. The music is similarly mixed, but with added ele- ments of industrial electronic music. The spooky key- boards on "Tier" are especially cool, but all sorts of lit- tle flourishes grace the tunes. Synthetic whistling effects, the tinny ring of a key- board; it's all there. Strangely, Rammstein's tracks are supposedly love songs. That's not really the feeling you get from the t English tracks on "Sehnsucht." "Du Hasst" means "you hate" and is at best an anti-love song. And "Engel" seems to be about going to Hell. Anyway, the music is interesting, especially the key- boards, but it can get on your nerves. Well, they've already been the number one band in Germany. If you think that's cool, try them on. Make Connections to Launch YOUR CAREER * Learn From and Network Among "Washington Insiders" * Produce Radio and TV Advertisements in Campaign Simulations * Compete as on Strategic Consulting Groups Lobbying Plans " Live 3 blocks from the White House and Monuments * GW's central location can put you on Capital Hill or the K Street corridor of I 1 Io 4 T I I