OIWL..
Dance department students demon-
strate their choreography in this wide-
ranging concert. Tonight and
tomorrow night. 8 p.m. Pease Studio.
michigandaily.com /arts

R rS

FRIDAY
APRIL 13, 2001

5


Canibals: NYC band to eat A2 alive

By Matt Raeburn
For the Daily
It's an urban jungle out there, but if you're not
willing to wade through it, the Canibals are ready
to bring it to you.
Based in Queens, New York, the band has
matured over its seven-year history, rising from a
*erse group of non-musicians to a constant
presence in the New York-area club circuit.
Incorporating rock melodies, hip-hop beats, reg-

bandmates to expose him to different kinds of
music, from Ice-T to Metallica. "I was telling
them, 'Man these guys would hang you up on a
tree before they care about you,' and they said,
'No, man, they ain't like that.' It really opened
my eyes."
But there's more to the band's message than
racism. The band is made up of a group of
"indigenous urban men" from very different
backgrounds, from guitarist and ex-Marine
"Dirty Black," to Colombian immigrant and gui-

Canibals
wlOblivion
Halfway Inn
rday at 7:30 p.m.
works for me

g a e
styles,
and a
L a t i n
vibe, the
music of
the Cani-
bals is
too com-
prehen-
sive to
really be
class i-
fied.
"T h e
part that
is that our

for their diverse fan base.
"I've got 40 miles to go, a full tank of gas, and
I'm on the road. Completely dosed on drugs,
almost completely blind, my destination
unknown," sings Bravo in "Roadkill," echoing
the thoughts of many young people.
With themes ranging from drugs, to oppres-
sion, to making it in an uncertain industry, the
Canibals have found that their music knows no
color. "It's sick out there brother, if we don't all
bind together, we're gonna die together," prophe-
sized Bravo.
Bravo makes no
apologies for wanting
the Canibals to be
successful, but he
doesn't pull punches
against artists who
disrespect their fans.
"I met Fred Durst
be fore, he's the kind
of guy who's on his
dick so hard, there's
no room for his girl,"
he laughed.
Because they have
yet to put out a
record on a major

Courtesy of Jade Tree Records
The Promise Ring stops by Detroit to get their pop rock on.
Promise Ring swears
Sou , power pop

By Chris Lane
Daily Arts Writer

Happy. Happy. Joy. Joy. And even
more happy with a few gushing ballads

crowd is as eclectic as our
music," lead singer Richie
Mavo told The Michigan x
1ily. "You'll find everybody :#
from a thug, to a prep, to a '
punk in our crowd."
Originally from Columbia,
Bravo and his family came to
New York when he was five..
"You gotta understand coming
from Columbia, the ghetto
here is like a fucking king- The Canibals will dri
Am," he explained. But it
Wn't take long for the reality of a segregated
American to set in for him.
"Living in NYC showed me all points. It
showed me the rich, the poor, the middle class,
honesty, fakeness, having one man say, 'wel-
come,' and another man saying, 'fuck you, get
out of my country."' Racism is one theme in the
Canibals' music, as all of the band's members are
of Latino or African heritage. Ironically, it took
coaxing on the part of Bravo's friends and future

ye you crazy ... although not as much as the Fine Young Can
tarist "Fangs," to ex-Biohazard drum tech
"Bones." The recent addition of bassist
"Th!rteen" rounds out the Canibals lineup and
creates the unified whole of their music.
"I am not my band," states Bravo. "We are an
entity. We're all fingers on the same fist, and
we're gonna punch your fucking lights out."
Despite receiving recent attention from bands
like Slipknot and Fear Factory, the Canibals have
not forgotten that their music is the binding force

label, the Canibals'
live performance is
the only way that
they can convey who
they really are.
"What keeps me
moving?" asked
Bravo. "The fact that
one day I sang a
song called "Groova-
Courtesy of Evencloser Entertainment t ron" dedicated to
nibals. everybody trying to
get into this music
shit and this little white kid came up to me cry-
ing and said 'that song's about me!' That shit
really tore my heart out."
The Canibals are on the way up the ladder, but
in many ways, they've already arrived, putting on
great live shows for loyal fans. Richie Bravo
sumed up the band's mantra, saying, "If the Cani-
bals can just get out one album, and get their
message across, then we've done our job. I'm not
looking for longevity, I'm just looking for love."

here and there.
description of a
Thre
Promise
Ring
Magic Stick
Tonight at 8

No, this is not a
"Ren and Stimpy"
episode, it is
surely The
Promise Ring at
the Magic Stick.
The emo-pop
quartet from Mil-
waukee graces
the stage tonight
and promises the
happy and the joy
and a whole lot
of sensitive, yet
catchy, power
pop.
But whatever

you do, don't describe them as an emo
band as I just did. According to a
recent interview with "Spin,' the band
hates that word. True, their lyrics and
well-flavored guitar work have moved a
few streets away from the pining, boo-
hoo sadness that characterizes the emo
scene. Yet, one can still feel a twinge of
heartbreak and swooning in the band's
latest four-song confection, Electric
Pink. No doubt, they'll give these new
treats prime playing time, but the band
never fails to play a cross section of its

the Milwaukee emo scene, but they
have transcended that sound and moved
to something more boppy and bouncy.
It is a smart brand of melodic pop rock
with clever, lovey dovey lyrics. What
arises is something like a cross between
Husker Du and John Denver. Trust me,
they're a foot-tapping affair.
Which brings us to the live perfor-
mance. The Promise Ring knows exact-
ly how to fill a room full of fun.
Singer/guitarist Davey vonBohlen's nat-
ural, good-old-boy charm and boyish
voice is downright contagious. One
would have never guess that the man
had a brain tumor, but he did. He's bet-
ter now and back to being happy.
But once the music starts, the whole
band seems to come out of its shell.
They talk to the audience. They take
requests, although never suggest them
to cover "Gouge Away." They hate that,
as well. The band tries to make a con-
nection. They strum and thwack and
gush out an energy that flies up your
spine and refuses to let you back into
your stress-filled, well-caffeineated
world. You just can't stop the bop.
The Promise Ring promises to be a
fine evening. Get some friends. Get
some gas. Cart it out to Detroit and get
your pop/emo fill for the year. Arty jazz
funk group Euphone opens up the
night. So, if you are just too much of a
pessimist to stay for the headlining hap-
piness, there should be some variety.
Just don't call them an emo band. Say
'ome' instead.

'Dream' combines dramatic realism in
family with Impressionistic perspective

catalog.
So what does
sound like? Their

The Promise Ring
roots spring up from

U U

By Jeremy Sullivan
For the Daily

3asement Arts, in association
with the Graduate Studio Project,
will present Heather McDonald's

Dream of
a Common
Language
Arena Theatre
ThroughSaturday

1992 play,
"Dream of a
Common Lan-
guage" this Fri-
day at 7 and 11
p.m and Satur-
day at 7 p.m. in
the Arena The-
atre.
McDonald's
play centers
around the dif-
ficulties of a
husband and
wife couple
and is set in
era of the first

art, the personal and the profession-
al, builds barriers that prevent either
reaching fulfillment in their relation-
ship.
This is Director Cara Gabriel's
fourth production at the University.
What sets this play apart from her
other works, or even other perfor-
mances of this play, she feels, is the
university environment. She and her
staff have created a unique method
of presentation. "What we've done is
we've made the whole stage a canvas
so that the play becomes a painting
on a canvas," Gabriel said. This is
done by laying canvas on the floor
and literally framing the audience's
perspective.
Another aspect that separates this
play is male and female nudity with-
in the production. "There's nothing
gratuitous, nothing graphic about it
- you only see their backs," said
Gabriel. Gabriel has also made a
slight change in character gender.

"From a historical point of view,
Shakespeare cast boy actors as
women and now we have a young
women cast as a boy, it's interesting
to me to see gender representation
because it is a feminist play."
Gabriel adds that the character is
convincing as the son of Victor and
Cloise.
On the other hand, Gabriel said, "I
think this play, on the negative side,
has the potential to be seen as a 'man
hater' play." But at the same time,

"the man and the woman love each
other very much. The man wants to
make the woman happy, help her
understand and that's why it's a com-
mon language. All the characters are
struggling to find a way to come
together. It's not about being kept
apart," she said. It is about the
women not being allowed. Despite
the confrontational start, "It ends
with a coming together and a reach-
ing of this common language. I want
people to leave feeling optimistic."

Introducing Ashley's
new Spring Grill
Our customers have asked for
more steaks and grill menu items
and we have responded!
We have added:
Cherry Stout Pork Tenderloin
Marinated in Bell's Cherrv Stout and
served with a cherry reduction.
22 oz Flat Iron Steak
Rubbed with garlic and spices and pan
seared to keep it extra juicy. Served
with a Stilton cheese sauce.
Grilled chicken and Roasted
Spring Vegetable Pizza
A thin crust pizza topped with grilled
breast of chicken and roasted spring
vegetables with lots of cheese.


Dragonmeade Beer
Tasting
uesday April 17th
7-9pm
Come meet the brewer and
taste a wide selection of the
fine Dragonmeade products.
A great way to end classes!

France within the

Impressionist studio. During a din-
ner to plan their first exhibit, the
n exclude the female artists by
lecting them and forcing them to
dine in the house's garden. All of the
female artists have similar creden-
tials to their male counterparts, but
have given up painting for reasons
of their own. Cloise is the wife of
Victor, but her ambitions are
crushed when her husband and male
peers ridicule her work during an
exhibition. Victor, on the other hand,
builds his reputation as an artist on
6de portraits of his wife. The ten-
n between the two over love and

Responsible, work-study student wanted for general
lab duties, including care of mice, in medical school
basic science research lab. Good exposure to molec-
ular biology research techniques. $8/hr for 20 hours.
Contact Sarah at stupica@umich.edu

A look at the
underside of U of M
www.universitysecrets.com

338 S. State Street, Ann Arbor MI 48104 734-996-9191,

www.ashicys.com

w

Ride t the Zoo!
on the
Culture
Saturday -aus
April F4
FREE