ARTS The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, October 1, 2002 - 7 BREAKING RECORDS REVIEWS OF THE MUSIC INDUSTRY'S NEW RELEASES PORK TORNADO PORK TORNADO RYKODISC By Laurence J. Freedman Daily Arts Writer pork tornado When Phish went on hiatus in the fall of 2000 there were many reasons circulating about why the band decided to take a break. One of the most satis- fying of these reasons was the idea that the Phish guys wanted to grow as musicians and improve their playing with Phish by spending some time working with other artists. Some of these collaborations were quite ambitious, such as Page McConnell's electro-funk trio Vida Blue and Trey Anastasio's self-titled afro-beat extravaganza. Failing to be nearly as interesting or enjoyable as these other projects is Pork Tornado, Jon Fishman's opportunity to play fun bar tunes with his favorite Burlington, VT musicians. Founded five years ago, Pork Tornado has only now released a mediocre album of vocal- based tunes that take the listener from raucous funk to sunny country to standard blues. The album's most interesting charac- teristic is also its downfall. The deci- sion to switch between songs written and sung by the different members of the band helps keep the record from sounding uniformly unexciting. It also means there isn't any fluidity to the album, however, a glaring weakness considering the tunes themselves don't stand out at all. The most promising cuts are supplied by bassist Aaron Hersey whose voice sounds like its been frying for years in the deep South rather than the heady Burlington scene. "Aaron's Blues" is the last track on the record and it almost makes you wish that the whole album sounded as relaxed and chill. Otherwise Pork Tor- nado offers standard back-porch coun- try ("Home Is Where You Are") with lyrics like "Baby I'm at home as long as you're with me" and old school New Orleans-esque R&B ("When I Got Drunk") that finds sax-man Joe Moore singing "I'm sober now, I won't be sober for long." It's not so much that the songs are bad (although I personally found "Kiss My Black Ass" really bad) as much as they are unsatisfying. Pork Tornado has broken no new ground here at all, and phans looking for Fishman's usual- ly exciting style are left with standard two-and-four beats that any solid drummer could have pulled off. It sounds as though Fishman has lots of fun playing in Pork Tornado. Unfortu- nately it's hard for the listener to be nearly as amused. RATING:* * ' RYAN ADAMS DEMOLITION UNIVERSAL By Joel M. Hoard Daily Arts Writer Ryan Adams has to decide whether he's an emotional singer-songwriter or a pretty-boy rocker, because he can't have it both ways. ,One minute he's sitting head in hands, cigarette held loosely between his lips, doing his best to look depressed. And the next he's playing "Move It On Over" in a Gap commer- cial. Such is the problem with Demoli- tion, Adams's third solo album: He tries to come off as both a pensive country singer and a hip young rock star. That's not to suggest Demolition is a bad album - it's excellent at times - it could just use some more focus. Never lacking in ambition or ego, Adams originally planned Demolition as a monstrous 60-song box set, but for- tunately for us he trimmed it to a lean 13 cuts. With songs ranging from the melancholy country of "Cry on Demand" to rowdy cowpunk numbers like "Gimme a Sign," Demolition serves as another remin'er that Adams is alt- country's most prolific writer. And he'll be damned if anyone ever forgets. Ryan needs to realize that he can't rock nearly as hard as he'd like. He tries to pull off Replacements-style rock, complete with his best Paul Westerberg impersonation, on "Nuclear" and "Starting to Hurt" but ends up sound- ing like a country-fried Johnny Rzeznik. Demolition's finer moments occur when Adams sets aside the electric gui- tar and snarl. He shows a deft hand at penning soulful country tunes, most notably "Cry on Demand," where he adopts a croon like his country-rock idol Gram Parsons. Adams gets a little out of line with the jokey "Tennessee Sucks," but if he can keep his wild side SAHARA HOTNIGHTS JENNIE BOMB ETSET RECODS By Laura Haber For the Daily There must be something in the water in Sweden. Though it has always played a role in the international music scene, rock music is quickly becoming Sweden's major export. It seems that every bored teenager who does not cross county ski has formed a band, and due to the rejuvenation of guitar rock all have quickly been singed to major labels. Now, bands that never thought they would make it out of Stockholm are gaining international attention. When The Hives exploded on the garage rock scene they blazed a path for many of their Swede rock counter- parts. to follow ... and follow they did. The latest Swedish offering du jour comes to us in the form of Sahara Hot- nights, an all-girl-punk outfit. In theo- ry, a female punk band has potential to be a refreshing Nordic breeze in the midst of all the hysteria that is sur- rounding the male dominated (thank- fully, save for Meg White) rock scene. Unfortunately, Sahara Hotnights fail to live up to the task at hand. Aside from a few inspired moments their latest offering Jennie Bomb leaves you, like Sweden, rather cold. Sahara Hotnights are a formulaic punk band, and Jennie Bomb is laden with run of the mill punk conventions. They have clearly studied the look and sound of their predecessors The Ramones, Blondie, The Clash and The Donnas, but fail to make any of it their own. What may be the Hotnight's greatest problem is their rather seri- ous disposition. Most of their songs are weighed down by it, which makes for lyrics with an inflated sense of self-purpose. The opening line of "Alright, Alright" does much to set the tone, "Now I feel like breaking laws / Go on start a civil war / Here's my fist, Where's the fight?" Sahara Hotnights are at their best when they stop posing as punks and incorporate other influences and sounds.' Being from the land of dis- HMMiS ma z Fi r in check, there's no reason why he can't continue to write good country songs. At just 27-years-old, Ryan Adams has a lot of career ahead of him. If he chooses the singer-songwriter road, he certainly has the talent to become as accomplished as Gram Parsons. But if he would rather be a hip young rocker, well, that's OK too. RATING: * * ' posable pop music, the Hotnights have clearly taken to heart the impor- tance of a strong hook and melody. Tracks like "Alright, Alright", "Keep up the Speed," "On Top of Your World" and "Only the Fakes Sur- vive" explore new wave and pop sounds and are by all means catchy. Though they wanna be Joey Ramone, The Sahara Hotnights are most appealing and have more potential in this form as themselves. RATING:* * the michigan daily EARLY SPECIALS! Spring Break Ba- hamas Party Cruise! 5 Days $299! Includes Meals, Parties, Awesome Beaches, Nightlife! Departs from Florida! Get Group - Go Free!! springbreaktravel.com 1-800-678-6386. EARLY SPRING BREAK SPECIALS! Cancun & Jamaica from $429! Free Breakfast, Din- ners & Drinks! Award Winning Company! Group Leaders Free! Florida Vacations from $149! springbreaktravel.com 1-800-678-6386. SPRING BREAK 2003 Travel with STS Americas #1 Student Tour Operator. Jamaica, Cancun, Acapulco, Bahamas, or Florida. Sell Trips Earn Cash Travel Free. Information/Reservations: 1-800-648-4849 or www.ststravel.com WE PAY TO PARTY & we need Marketing Reps! Great Commissions- full training pro- vided. Reps get FREE trips & VIPAccess on- site! Lowest spring break prices & largest par- ties in South Padre, Cancun, Acapulco, Mazat- lan. (877)633-2386/jobs@inertiaTours.com 'Stays in the Picture' is this year's most entertaining film $250 A NIGHT potential/bartending training provided. 1-800-293-3985 ext.607. ENJOYING PUSH, NEVADA? Valuables already found by search4e players. Many more chances to claim amazing klot. www.search4e.org/loot MICHIGAN WOMEN'S BASKETBALL Team walk-on tryouts will be Oct. 16, 7:00 p.m. at Chrysler Arena. Candidates must be UM full time student. Current signed physi- cals needed. Pre-registration required. Con- tact Barb Donlan @ 647-2918. NECK PAIN OR back pain? Health care in- tro. 4 Chiropractic treatments $75. Near U of M 734-994-5966. By Todd Weiser Daily Film Editor The most entertaining picture to appear in theaters this year has finally arrived and it's a documen- tary, of all things. Well, it's a semi-documentary; a better description of "The Kid Stays in the Picture" would be an autobiography of producer Robert * Evans as done by a couple other people, THE Ki they being documen- tarians Nanette IN THE . Burstein and Brett At the N Morgen. The Even though Burstein and Morgen USA get director's credits, this film is none other than Robert Evans' personal show. Based on Evans' 1994 autobiography of the same name, which became wildly popular once it was released as a book-on-tape with Evans himself providing the reading in his I., - - si ID Pl &1 CONSIDERING ADOPTION? 2 U of M Alumni both med. professionals looking to adopt infant into our loving home. Married 8 yrs., homestudy approved by licensed agency. Wife looking forward to staying home with in- fant. Please call our personal 800 number with any questions and to learn more about us. 1- 800-278-8180 access code 03. SPECIAL GIFT- We're looking for healthy women between the ages 21-25 for egg donation. All ethnic backgrounds are. encour- aged. Fee paid. Send inquiries to AARMA, P.O. Box 2674,Ann ArborM48106. famous "I'm the coolest man alive" snarl, "Kid" unabashedly tells the life story of the once stu- dio exec and big-time producer as Evans saw it and remembers it. While most documentaries try to hide their innate biases, Burstein and Morgen revel in Evans' boasting, including a pre- cautionary quote from the man himself before the picture begins, "There are TS three sides to every STAYS story. My side, your ICTURE side and the truth. .c a And no one is lying. ichigan Memories shared serve each one differ- ilms ently." That one man's life could so imitate the ups and downs of the Holly- wood movies he produced becomes the material for a most unique and enjoyable film. Evans' roller coaster ride through the entertainment industry begins with his being discovered in a Bev- erly Hills pool for a role opposite Jimmy Cagney. It is the perfect opening for any Hollywood dream, but Evans' career as an actor does- n't last long as he freely admits his own lack of talent. However, an on-set acting expe- rience becomes the inspiration for his career goal and the film's title ATTENTION CLASSIFIED ADVERTISERS: DUE TO U OF M FALL BREAK. THERE WILL BE NO CLASSIFIEDS ON OCTO- BER 14" 6151", 2002. OUR EARLY DEADLINES ARE AS FOLLOWS: LINE AD: and hard work, Paramount pictures named Evans head of production, the youngest man to ever achieve such a position. Amidst widespread criticism of his hiring, Evans turned Paramount from 9th at the box office to number one in the late- '60s and early '70s. He did this by taking chances on films no one else would touch and turning them into blockbusters and award winners, they include "Rosemary's Baby," "Chinatown," "Love Story" and most prominently, "The Godfather." Evans calls the New York pre- miere of "The Godfather" his crowning moment, arriving with bombshell actress/girlfriend Ali McGraw on one arm and Henry Kissinger on the other. It wasn't all downhill from there, but it never got that good again. After a very public breakup in which McGraw left Evans for co- star Steve McQueen, a cocaine courtesy of USA Films Evans sits with another one of his famous female pals. to create a moment of intense fear and peril) starts his journey back to a place that's not quite the top, but at least far from bottom. Evans' voice, borrowed from the book-on-tape, guides the viewer along the amusing, touch- ing and always exhilarating ride. The filmmakers, using Evans' extensive collection of photos, never allow for the interviews of others, it is Evans' story and we want no distractions from that. Digital effects transform the static pictures, bringing out colors and pulling Evans' body out of the photographs and to the forefront of the screen, with a background usually containing sparkling stars during the most luxurious and magnificent of Evans' triumphs. "The Kid Stays in the Picture" is unlike any documentary you have ever seen, and it is truly unlike any other film you have ever sen- Brstein and1 Morcpn FRFF CAT! CUTE nlavful_ black and white. 5 v _ < I.