ARTS
The Michigan Daily - Thursday, October 9, 2003 - 9A
The new faces of Canadian rock
Courtesy of
NBC
No longer
clueless,
but still
k hot.
The
' Fighting
Sf.Peacock
MI.{ Coupling
{ t Thursdays at
f 9:30 p.m. on
NBC
Miss
... Match
Fridays at
9 p.m. on NBC
MUST SKIPTV?
NBC AGAIN FAILS TO FIND 'FRIENDS' REPLACEMENT
By Alex Wolsky
Daily Arts Writer
Leave your preconceptions at the
door, because whatever you think
Canadian music is like is most likely
wrong. When the Rolling Stones
walked off stage at Downsview Park
in Toronto on July 31st, having just
played to more than 450,000 people,
Mick Jagger bellowed, "Toronto is
back, and it's booming." And, he was-
n't kidding. Over the past couple of
years, it hasn't needed much of a
boost musically since the entire coun-
try has been producing some of the
best music around.
The emerging Canadian music scene
is one of the most diverse and exciting
waves of new music ever witnessed. As
opposed to most American music, be it
mainstream or underground, more
Canadian artists appear to be crossing
genres and breaking new ground in all
areas from pop to rock, soul to country.
However, a consistent lack of public-
ity throughout major U.S. media outlets
has caused a significant lack of state-
side releases from many of the best
artists in Canada. Others however, just
can't seem to penetrate the lackluster
American popular music scene, which
has plagued foreign artists for decades.
The Daily profiles four of this years
most promising artists from this bur-
geoning Canadian music scene.
Broken Social Scene / Metric /
Stars: While last year's You Forgot It in
People went fairly unnoticed in the
States, it received Album of Year at the
Juno's for this Toronto music collective.
After their enrollment went to nearly
What about the vocle of Geddy Lee? How did it get so high?
double digits, their sound became more
complex and allowed them to harness
the capability of their pieces into a
nearly perfect configuration. The more
lush, grandiose side of BSS can be
seen in the side-project Stars, whose
new album Heart is a pop-masterpiece;
and if you're still looking for more
BSS, Emily Haines and her project
Metric released their second album Old
World Underground, Where Are You
Now this year to moderate success.
The Constantines: The second
album from this Ontario post-rock band
creates a boisterous and intricate group-
ing of songs set between indie-rock,
soul, and punk. Their 2003 release,
Shine a Light, proves once again that
fiery intensity and raucous lyricism are
what rock music was built upon.
The Dears: After the release of
Orchestral Pop Noir Romantique in
2001, Montreal's The Dears returned
this year with No Cities Left a self-
indulgent pop muse into the spirit of
whatever was good about all those bad
British pop bands we loved. The
album delves into pop hooks reminis-
cent of the Smiths yet transcends the
boundaries of experimental pop by
striking a proper balance between art
and madness.
Pilate: The genre-bending group
Pilate has been the recipient of some
much deserved hype as of late. Their
album Caught by the Window has
already been hailed as one of the years
best and they've definitely lived up to
the claim as one of Canada's most
engaging bands. An eclectic mix of
striking vocals and diverse instrumen-
tation, it has the right combination to
be a classic stamp of the recent wave of
Canadian innovation.
By Katie Marie Gates
Daily TV/New Media Editor
Some might say it's the end of an era. A few weeks
ago, NBC aired its final premiere episode of longtime
television favorite "Friends." The popular sitcom
is finally ready to say goodbye to love trian-
gles and goofy storylines. With "Seinfeld"
long gone and "Frasier" growing older, the
great sitcoms of "Must See TV" will soon
live on only in cable reruns and DVD
sets. What will become of the once
golden network of the peacock as its
friends quickly fall away?
The replacements are lining up at
the door. "Coupling," a "new"~ come-
dy about six friends and their inter-
twined sex lives is a meager attempt
to capitalize off past success. Often
funny in its own bizarre hypersexu-
alized way, the sitcom lacks essential
plot and character development.
The pilot revolves around Steve's
(Jay Harrington) quest to break up
with his girlfriend, Jane (Lindsay
Price) after several unsuccessful
attempts. Meanwhile, Susan (Rena
Sofer, "Keeping the Faith") ends her
fling with the conceited Patrick (Colin
Ferguson) then proceeds to date Steve.
Patrick takes a chance with Susan's best
friend, Sally (Sonia Walger) leaving Jane
to hook up with Steve's friend Jeff (Christo-
pher Moynihan) in subsequent episodes.
This sextuplet of bed buddies will soon get
old if outside storylines are not introduced. Aside
from Susan and Jeff's workplace and a short
videogame session, the characters seem to do little
more than hang out at a bar that looks uncannily like
a coffee shop.
Next in line to spruce up the network is a new
drama. Overflowing with crime scene sagas and a
ninth season of emergency room distress, NBC looks
to lighten things up with the latest "Miss Match."
Darren Star ("Sex and the City") is appar-
ently unashamed to assign his name to this
lame romantic attempt. After successfully
pairing three couples, divorce lawyer Kate
Fox (Alicia Silverstone) becomes a
matchmaker for pathetic singles. Kate
strives to strike a "karmic balance" by
creating new relationships while legal-
ly helping to end old ones.
The bulk of the plot ends there. At
the end of the pilot, Kate makes a
few mediocre matches and pre-
dictably breaks up with her current
boyfriend after meeting a handsome
stranger.
Silverstone's character is far too
reminiscent of the airhead Cher that
made her famous in 1995. The fresh-
faced actress seems unchanged, while
her costars are far worse than the
" "Clueless" cast. Most unbearable are
her obnoxious womanizing father
(Ryan O'Neal, "Love Story") who also
serves as Kate's boss, and his pompous
law associate Nick (James Roday).
A Friday night time slot puts the final
nail in the coffin for "Miss Match." The
young demographic it seeks to entertain will
be better off heading out on the town to find their
own matches. Maybe this is the new theme for NBC,
stop looking to television for friends and romance
because the real world is far more entertaining.
EA shoots and scores with NHL 2004
By Adam Rottenbwrg
Daily Arts Writer
VIE A E
With the NHL hockey season
beginning play last night, EA Sports'
NHL series returns with all the bells
and whistles in place to continue the
mystique created in previous install-
ments.
The presenta-
tion is altered to NHL 2004
make it more GameCube, PS2
streamlined with and XBox
the other EA EA Sports
sports franchises.
Rock and punk tunes fill the menu's
soundtrack as images of your designat-
ed team run across the screen (Go
Wings!). The graphicshave been
refined and the audio upgraded. Instead
of a comedic approach to the announc-
er's play-by-play, the developers include
more authentic color commentary.
Including all 30 NHL franchises
and the All-Star squads, EA decided
to add in national teams and interna-
tional elite league teams as well.
Every mode of play returns from the
last offering, but the Dynasty mode
has been significantly enhanced. Simi-
lar to its "Madden"
cousin, Dynasty
mode lets the player
become the generaly
manager of the team
and control every
aspect of the organi-
zation, from player
management to con-
cession prices.
Gameplay has
changed significantly
this time around,
returning to a more
realistic style of play.
The tempo is slowed
and it creates a more
fluid and entertaining
experience. The most important fea-
ture to bloodthirsty fans is the
revamped fighting engine, which is
cued by a simple button press. The
actual fights are fun, but after a few
times they become repetitive and the
novelty wears off.
Sports games are at their best when
played against another person. "NHL
2004" provides the ideal competition
for hockey fans
starving for some
action on the ice..
"NHL 2004" lets
users now battle
unseen opponents
online (PS2 version
only). Without seeing
the face of a rival,
bloodying and injur-
ing an opposing play-
er loses some of its
effect.
"NHL 2004" suc-
ceeds in spite of the
now egregious error
of its choice for cover
boy. Danny Heatley
may be facing vehicular manslaughter
charges, but it should not detract rabid
hockey fans from picking up the latest
installment. Hockeytown is ready for
another cup and "NHL 2004" lets you
make it happen.
(McKennyUneion
and Campus Life present ....
Jason Mraz
Sunday, October 12, 2003 .
Doors open at 7 p.m.
EMU Convocation Center
India Arie JSDN MRAZ
Monday, October 20, 2003
Doors open at 7 p.m.
EMU Convocation Center
311 and Alien Ant Farm
Thursday, October 23, 2003
Doors open at 7 p.m.
EMU Convocation Center
For tickets call 487-228P. For more information
call 734.487.3045 or check out our Web site at:
www. emich. edu/campuslife.
i
I
r
t r2e
Michael Moore
Friday, October 31, 2003
7 p.m., EMU Convocation Center
Free - ticket required
0.A. . . w Virginia Coalition
Sunday, November 9, 2003
Doors open at 7 p.m.
MONANEVAIRIMOM