Thursday November 10, 2005 arts. michigandaily.com artspage@michigandaily.com c Ibr 1lt1ici~twn tiI RTrS 9A . ... ......... Silver Jews return with fleshed-out LP By Alexandra Jones Daily Arts Editor Dave Berman sounds like a changed man. If you were to compare the Silver Jews' most magnetic work, 1998's Silver American Water, with Jews Tanglewood Numbers, the latest in a long Tanglewood line of experiments in Numbers blank verse and coun- Drag City try twang, that'd be the first thing you'd notice: The wan- dering malcontent (or exile, we're never sure) persona in which his best and most personal songs were writ- ten ("Random Rules," "Send in the Clouds," "The Wild Kindness") has broken down, literally and figurative- ly, and found a home. He's relegated his traveling com- panion, former Pavement frontman and accomplished abstract solo-rock- er Stephen Malkmus, to guitar and built a settlement around his partner- ship with his wife, Cassie. Her qua- vering soprano doesn't even come close to blending with Berman's gruff, atonal sing-speak; it acts as an oppo- site, her comforting backup echoes providing a side-byside comparison to the road-worn confessions of her husband. The new album's expanded lineup, The Tanglewood Numbers Band, also includes brooding singer/ songwriter Will Oldham, experimen- tal Chicago musician Azita Youssefi See SILVER, Page 11A RAGE AGAINST DETROIT "I guess I died tryin'." 'DIE' ANOTHER DAY RAPPER 50 CENT ENTERS THE ACTING GAME By Zach Borden Daily Arts Writer You've heard the story - the myth, if you will. Born and raised in Queens without a father, Curtis Jackson was only eight years old when his drug- dealing mother was murdered. Taken in by his grandparents, the future rapper and entrepreneur amassed a rap sheet in his teens for selling drugs. Then, the now-legendary, defining moment of his life - getting shot nine times - slowed Jackson's (now known as 50 Cent) progress as an aspiring rapper. He survived to become one of this genera- tion's most popular cultural icons. If you think this sounds like a movie, then you're partially right. Taking the "8 Mile" route a la Eminem, 50 has given creative license for his life story with "Get Rich Or Die Tryin'," which is now playing nationwide. In the film, 50 Cent plays Marcus, a drug dealer who dreams of becoming a rapper, suffers a personal trag- edy and turns his life around. Making a full-length feature proved to be a big transition, especially since 50 had previously worked only on music videos. "When making a video, you spend a lot of time performing directly into the camera," 50 Cent said. On film, you're never supposed to look at the camera. It was some- thing I had to get used to." And while he didn't take acting lessons ("I didn't read Shakespeare"), he did have an acting coa-h to guide him through the script's several drafts. Guiding 50's life on screen was Oscar-nomi- nated filmmaker Jim Sheridan ("In America"), who directed the film. It may seem like an unlikely match, but for 50 Cent, it proved worthwhile. In preparation to work with the renowned Irish direc- tor, 50 Cent watched Sheridan's previous films. "Jim was great ... I was excited about working with him. Me and Jim, we kick it. You look at him, he's from Dublin. It's different from South Jamaica, Queens. But he got the actual behaviors and mood of (the place) all on film," 50 cent said. As to whether the fictionalized version of his life can compare to what actually happened, the newly trained thespian said that it could "recapture the mood of the actual situations, but it doesn't emulate the same way." 50 was clear about the key differ- ences between his experience and the screen version: "In the film, I'm shot in a car. In real life, I wasn't in a car. I got a grandmother who calls me while I'm getting shot. My grandmother never called me. She was in my front yard. It's good, but it's different." 50 said recreating his infamous shooting didn't both- er him - but the operation that followed was a differ- ent story. "I was on a table and it took us about eight hours (to shoot). I had on prosthetics, make-up ... all this stuff so I couldn't really move," he explained. For me, I had been in that actual place before. When I got done with that scene, I wasn't really in the mood to talk, so I went to my trailer to relax." If having your own line of Reebok sneakers, fla- vor of VitaminWater, a video game starring you and your hip-hop posse and even a guest spot on "The Simpsons" constitutes the American dream, then 50 has certainly achieved it. So what else is there for the superstar to accomplish? "I'm always looking for new things," he said. What about anoth- er stab at acting? "I won't (act) again until I find a script that is exciting enough." TOUMMIASO GOMEZ/Daily Audiosiave guitarist Tom Morello performs at th ox Theatre on Saturday. ~, '~ w '4 DAILY ARTS. You CAN FIND US IN THE CLUB. WE'LL HAVE THE BOTTLE FULL OF BUB. Enhance your career options. Explore the advantages of a University of Detroit Mercy School of Law Education: - Learn skills to distinguish yourself in the practice of law, business, and leadership positions - Discover rescources to jump-start your career - Join the proud tradition of making a difference OR, :V >:':x :: v zss:': ;:r°:a::::?: ,' }'t C:¢4 ? s ^ck.:c'+. $',. :. ;o