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.( 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