12 - The Michigan Daily - Wednesday, October 7, 1998
Band got away and cruised home
0
By Adlin Rosli
Daily Arts Writer
"Its great to be home, guys!" said
Getaway Cruiser singer Dina Harrison
in the middle of the group's perfor-
mance at the Blind Pig this past Friday.
Playing to a packed house, Ann
Arbor's finest rock band gave an elec-
trifying perfor-
mance of its
songs. Although
the band members
Getaway were all recover-
Cruiser ing from a recent
The Blind Pig sickness, the band
Oct. 2, 1998 still managed to
rock the Blind
Pig.
In true Blind
Pig tradition, the
headliner's perfor-
mance was
delayed. The cause
of the wait was
due to the opening act, rap group Slum
Village, not finding the venue on time.
Consequently, Getaway Cruiser did not
take the stage until it was well past mid-
night. Despite the late hour of the per-
formance, the crowd had been kept
quite awake by Slum Village's energetic
grooves and aggressive rapping that
kept everyone's hands up in the air. A
definite party vibe was well established
by the group.
This party atmosphere carried
through when Getaway Cruiser took the
stage. The group opened its set with
"Birthday" and the crowd swayed and
danced appreciatively. Singer Dina
Harrison and company had terrific on-
stage chemistry that seemed to perme-
ate all across the room. Guitarist Chris
Peters had some initial technical diffi-
culties, but the matter was quickly
resolves with and the group delivered
blow after blow of tight renditions of its
songs.
Songs off its Sony/550 music debut
release such as, "Something about you,"
"Strung Over, Hung Out" and "I'm
Fine (I find)," all came to exciting life
with guitarist brothers Chris and Drew
Peters both attacking their guitars like
their lives depended on it. Chris espe-
cially got a whopping response when he
played a solo with the guitar behind his
head, a la Hendrix. Drew was not to be
outdone either. His entire body kept
violently jerking about to the strum-
ming of his guitar.
The Cruiser's rhythm section, Mark
Dundon on bass and Dan Carroll on
drums were not outshined as they each
put a lot of heart into their playing as
well. Mark's onstage presence added to
the show as the tall bass player's
reserved stage moves added a nice bal-
ance to the manic energy of the Peters
brothers and singer Dina's moves.
Drummer Dan Carroll, who sometimes
shares the spotlight with programmed
beats, was a very intense musician to
watch. He was completely punishing
the drums with his tight sense of rhythm
and groove.
Earlier that day, Getaway Cruiser had
performed a short four-song set at
Tower Records, which only a small
number of people attended. Attendance
at the Blind Pig, however, was not a
problem at all. The venue was packed
full with predominantly college-aged
fans. The fans' dancing and singing-
along helped provide a very enjoyable
vibe to the show.
When it was time to perform its last
song for the night, singer Dina
announced, All right everybody, its time
to get down! I want to see some serious
booty shaking out there!" On that cue,
the group belted out its ultra catchy and
danceable tune, "Let's get down," and
ended its set.
With its performance that night, the
group managed to prove that it was
indeed one of Ann Arbor's finest local
acts. The band had a terrific selection
of its songs that were well-performed
and had lots of charisma leftover as
well.
Getaway Cruiser had the weekend off
,from touring but headed out on the road
again this past Monday. Until Getaway
Cruiser comes back for another home
show, Ann Arbor will probably not see
anything quite like Friday's perfor- ADRIANA YuG
mance in a while. Chris Peters and Dina Harrison performed at the Blind Pig this past Friday.
Ring fulfills its Promise
0
4
Beckett's playr
takes on power
By Kate Kovalszki
Daily Arts Writer
Samuel Beckett is known to most students through high-
school English classes, where his famous "Waiting for
Godot," often delights, as well as confuses them. Now, stu-
dents have the opportunity to see Beckett performed in per-
son as the University Department of Theatre and Drama
opens its 1998-99 season with Samuel Beckett's play,
"Endgame."
"Endgame" is truly one of those
plays which one must see and experi-
ence, rather than just read. The title of
Endgame the play refers to the final phase in the
Trueblood game of Chess and befits the work,
Theater which deals with endings. The setting
of this one-act piece is a wrecked room,
tomorrow at 8p.m. strewn with the remnants of industrial
decay. The four characters include
Hamm, a blind and paralyzed man,
both bitter and demanding, and his son-
turned-slave, Clov, who is at his father's
beck and call. The remaining two char-
acters, Hamm's parents, are stationed in
garbage cans for the endurance of the
play and personify the fear and loneliness of old age.
In the style of Beckett's most famous play, "Waiting for
Godot," "Endgame" contains little action but is packed with
pregnant meaning.
As the director of the play, Philip Kerr points out,
"Endgame" is aplay "in which the essential ingredients are
0
Courtesy of University Productions
Josh Parrott and Jason inder star in "Endgame."
condensed down like maple syrup. Every action, every
word takes on a great power."
There is nothing superfluous in "Endgame," yet there is
much ambiguity. Nonetheless, the collective elements of the
play all work to illuminate the human condition in the 20th
Century. Kerr states that the play highlights "the futility of
human efforts, which are often without meaning and bring
loneliness, yet are still carried out, over and over."
In the tradition of Beckett, the essence of the play is pre-
sented with biting precision and a large dose of dark humor.
"It is Beckett's immense talent as a word smith that lets him
give us a play with dead on honesty, pathos and laughter,"
Kerr said.
With great emphasis and enthusiasm, Kerr insists that
this play offers a unique event for everyone who views it.
While one's interpretation of the play will be colored by
their own personal experiences, all who attend "Endgame"
will digest both a comic and thought-provoking work of art.
The performance Friday will be followed by a post-per-
formance discussion Prof. Enoch Brater. Brater is one of the
world's foremost authorities on Samuel Beckett.
By Rob Mitchum
Baily Ars Waiter
It's hard to put a finger on what the Promise Ring does
right. Too emo to be pop-punk, too pop-punk to be emo,
the band has carved itself a unique sound in the cluttered
world of indie-rock. That sound was on display this past
Thursday night in a spirited performance at Detroit's
Magic Stick.
On second thought, spirited doesn't even begin to
describe the P-Ring's hour-long set. Being the first show
of its latest tour, the Wisconsin quartet hit the stage with
more energy than a 6-year-old with a sugar high.
In fact, the band started the show
with the mentality of hyper young-
sters, each member sporting a differ-
The Promise ent heavy metal long-hair wig for the
first four songs. Guitarist/singer
Davey von Bohlen hammed it up the
Magic Stick most by frantically running through
Oct. 1,1998 one arena-rock move after another,
from pumping his fist in the air to the
synchronized sway with bassist Tim
Burton to the playing guitar between
the legs stance.
Between songs, von Bohlen played
the role of the stoner rock star,
promising to "turn Detroit into
Weed-troit" to the amusement of the
crowd.
But the music was nothing to laugh at. Anchored by
simplistic guitar chords and riffs, the Promise Ring's
songs put the emphasis on Burton's melodic bass lines
and the complexsdrumming of Daniel Didier, supported
by von Bohlen's enthusiastic delivery of his cryptic
lyrics.
Where the band alternates between poppy tunes and
more subdued, melancholy tracks on record, its live set
focused almost entirely on the former, with songs such as
"Everywhere in Denver" and "Perfect Lines" quickly
inspiring random fits of rocking out in the crowd. Even
the one representative from the P-Ring's slower side, "A
Picture Postcard," was given a slightly faster arrange-
ment, and lost its pleading tone beneath von Bohlen's
smiling enthusiasm.
Another highlight of the set was "Why Did Ever We
Meet," which proved that even the most jaded scenester
can't resist singing along with a chorus that consists of
the words "ba ba bada" and "do do do." The Promise
Ring also premiered a handful of freshly written songs,
due to appear on a future EP These songs seemed to fea-
ture few changes to the band's sound (not counting the
use of a very un-punk rock drum machine on one tune),
but assured that the Promise Ring will continue to be one
of the best bands flying beneath the mainstream radar.
Opening the show was Jets to Brazil, the new project
from ex-Jawbreaker frontman Blake Schwarzenbach.
Slightly mellowing the gloomy sound of his old band
with keyboard flourishes and less distortion,
Schwarzenbach sounded slightly less pissed off at life
and more excited to be back in the music world. Despite
technical problems and a bit of stage nervousness, the
quartet turned in a strong performance of songs from its
soon-to-be released debut album, "Orange Rhyming
Dictionary."
4$O( i
cvr o
~ ~ ;rt' 3<A~~.~~>.( F__________________
E
U
ci)
Join us for a live presentation
about superb career opportunities
at Arthur D. Little.
Thursday, October 8th - 5:00 p.m.
Michigan Union - Room 2105B
Artlur D Little
the world's most creative consultants
.1 r 1
t
A