The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Wednesday, December 13, 2006 - 5 IClipse art DUO'S FURIOUS SECOND DISC A MASTERPIECE By BRIAN CHEN Daily Arts Writer After lawsuits, label politics and frustrating delays of the Clipse's soph- omore effort Hell Hath No ** * Fury,it's easytounderstand Cljpse the inspiration behind the album's title. But what's Hell Hath No Fury surprising is the degree of Jive influence their anger has had in the outcome of the final product. In the opening track, the Ezekiel 25:17 pas- sage from "Pulp Fiction" offers clarification - Samuel L. Jackson waxing poetic about "the path of the righteous man" and "the finder of lost children." It's grandiose, but it's just orna- mentation of two guys laying "vengeance" upon their enemies. Likewise, underlying Malice and Pusha T's brilliant lyrics and the Neptunes' impeccable production is the raw sound of fury and vitriol, unifying the album's variegated tracks and establishing Hell Hath No Fury as a cohesive classic. Lyrically, the duo operates on a previously untapped stratum of emotion. It's the same drug-dealer subject matter as in their debut, Lord Willin', but now the content is more caustic. There are still the memorable one-liners ("Open the Frigidaire, twenty-five to life in here"), but this time around the Clipse have infused their deft wordplay with a searing wrath - every word and syllable is meant to draw blood. In "We Got It For Cheap," Pusha raps, "No serum could cure / All the pain I've endured Film students gear up for bi-yearly fest We're a little worried about those sunglasses, but the album is still pretty damn good. By JEFFREY BLOOMER Managing Editor A being makes a cake with a strange ener- gy. Apparent- Lightworks ly the moon is involved. And Festival so, I'm told, Friday and are dancing Saturday at 6 p.m. people. At the Natural All this for Science Auditorium a class proj- ect. As you Free continue to ignore that term paper on the aesthetics of neo-Platonism this weekend, maybe it's time to consider a change in major. Screen arts and cultures stu- dents are here to tempt you. The film in question, "Moon Dance," is just one of a wealth of student productions that will screen this Friday and Saturday at 6 p.m. as part of the Lightworks Festival, a bi-yearly event that brings a close to each fall and win- ter semester with a free showing of student films. "It's a fun piece," LSA junior Marty Stano said of the experi- mental six-minute short, a project he was involved in as part of his 300-level filmmaking course. The piece will be shown in its original 16 mm format along with other student productions that will include animation and documen- taries. Still digging that history of art degree? Stano said he first attended the two-night festivities when he was a freshman and has been involved (including small roles in films and stints as a crewmember) ever since. He is also on the board of the Film and Video Student Association, which is presenting the event. He described the Department of Screen Arts and Cultures - which is cosponsoring the event along with Apple and Arts and Michigan - as a "nice, friendly community." He said the department's collabo- ration with students is paramount to the event's success. Both screenings, which also make fantastic diversions from finals, are free and begin at 6 p.m. / From crack to rap / To back to sellin' it pure." For further elucidation, brother Malice explains, "Pyrex and powder, it was back to the norm / Through all the adversity the fury was born." Later, in "Ain't Cha," Pusha churlishly sneers, "Oh, you just gon take without asking, ain't cha? /You just grabbing, you ain't earning for shit, that's too old fashioned," while Malice Clipse is doing angry, and doing it very, very well. taunts, "If it seems like the walls are closing in, it's only cause they are, motherfucker." If this isn't the livid rap of the wrathful, nothing is. The Neptunes produce the entire album, pro- viding a singularly eclectic collection of beats. From the hellish rapture of "Keys Open Doors" to the throbbing 808s in "Trill," Pharrell Wil- liams and Chad Hugo run the gamut of musical inspiration. To list briefly some of the instru- ments: organs, steel drums, accordions, tam- bourines - the production can be challenging, but it's always rewarding, as the beats' abrasive dissonance complements the Clipse's vengeful verses. But while the Clipse never fail to impress lyr- ically, there are often glaring contradictions in their meanings. In "Trill," Pusha states, "Rare- ly do I toot my own horn," belying his opening boast, "Fear 'em, as soon as you hear 'em, upon my arrival the dope dealers cheer 'em." Mean- while, the nefarious machinations of "Chinese New Year" provide a stark contrast to the guilt- ridden admissions in the album's closer "Night- mares." These inconsistencies are dismissible nonetheless, if only because the duo sells every shameless boast and inward confession with unflinching conviction. Whereas most rappers rush their sophomore album to ride the wave of success from their debut, the Clipse were left in label limbo, forced to simmer to the point of explosion. Now the moment of catharsis has come, and the result is one of the most exciting releases in rap's his- tory. At a point when the genre needed it most, Hell Hath No Fury is an adrenaline shot to hip hop's failing heart, reviving the rap game to a state of consciousness. Institute ushers in new home at Thayer By ABIGAIL B. COLODNER DailyArts Writer An exhibition of artworks exem- plifying intellectual dialogue and collaboration, the tenets of French great research Artists' schools like Books the Univer- sity, christens Running through a building that Dec.20 itself brings At the Institute for together three the Humanities academic departments and one interdisciplin- ary powerhouse. That powerhouse, the Institute for the Humanities, gathers graduate students, fellows and faculty from various disciplines to research in a collaborative set- ting. It features lectures, sympo- siums and exhibitions, such as the current one, that reflect this empha- sis on collaboration. The institute's new home is the recently completed Thayer Build- ing, which also houses the Center for Jewish Studies, Near Eastern Studies and Asian Languages and Cultures. The new space opens with an exhibition of "artists' books" from French artists and writers of the late 19th and 20th centuries. Their subjects range from reinterpreta- tions of works from antiquity to biographical tributes to their con- temporaries. Softly cradled by can- vas supports under their glass cases, most books lie open, but some are closed to display notably creative or striking bindings. The books seem to promise exceptional versions of that infinite- ly pleasurable experience, reading a book. The limitations of a museum setting, of course, prevent this, bringing the medium's power to evoke to the fore. "This exhibit is about the synergy between word and image, which is central to the Institute's concerns, making it a perfect openingshow for us in the new building," said Daniel Herwitz, the institute's director. In addition to givingthe institute a more central location than its for- mer offices in Rackham, the build- ing allows for a superior exhibition space, one with excellent lighting and climate control. "Thanks to LSA we now have a proper museum space that allows for the presentation and security of museum-quality objects," Herwitz said. Books as collaborations between writers and visual artists may strike most visitors as exotic or a thing of the past, and to some extent, both are true. As the works displayed and the exhibit's pamphlet make clear, these books are a phenomenon mainly of European artists, from a tradition that began in the last quar- ter of the 19th century. Only about 250 copies were printed of most of the books, making them valuable limited editions and of more prac- tical interest to art dealers and col- lectors than to someone browsing Shaman Drum. The visual art to be seen here offers a rare opportunity to see the range of popular artists, as many of the pieces are in mediums and styles atypical for greats like Picas- so, Matisse and Manet. One book from 1930, a play, features etchings by Pierre Bonnard, an artist famous for his busy and bright oil paintings. The spare black-and-white etchings are an illuminating contrast to the works for which he is best known. Books are often grouped in their '.P lt Alum-backed 'Fury' to screen at the Michigan By JEFFREY BLOOMER documentary "Freedom's Fury," ManagingEditor which will screen at The Michigan Theater tomorrow and Friday only Two decades ago, Lucy Liu at7 p.m. The film's writer/director, was a far cry from the ceremoni- Colin Gray, is an Ann Arbor native ous decapita- and University alum who befriend- tions and Josh Freedom's ed Liu on the set of "Superstar" Hartnett-chas- Fury duringcthe 19Sf production. ing her recent Tomorrow and The film pivots around the 1956 film roles have. Hungarian Revolution and subse- prescribed. quent Melbourne Olympic games, In 1988, she At the Mchigan where the Hungarians faced off starred onstage against the Soviet Union in what at the Power Center in a produc- was called "the bloodiest game in tion of "Jesus Christ Superstar." Olympic history." This weekend, Liu will return Regular ticket prices apply, to Ann Arbor in a small way. The with the customary $6.75 discount actress served as producer on the given to students with ID. thel dafly ef tIidtaf tProduction Department ' is hiring ad designers! E-mail Chelsea at chelbh@umich.edu for more information Courtesy ofltheInstitutefor the Humanities The Institute for the Humanities' display of French artists' books will run until Dec. 20. cases b or a vis Paymal, explaint decision Firs m Fr thing, bu haps mo An ex book by Prevert, der Calt offered the pleas y similarities in subject display quality of the current exhib- tual component. Elisabeth it. the Institute's curator, An 1875 printing of Edgar Allen d some of her curatorial Poe's poem "The Raven" with illus- s: "Chronology is some- trations by Edouard Manet, is the most prominently displayed work. According to collector Jim Beall, exhibit since from whose extensive collection the works are drawn, it's this book that ove looks at began it all. "Thisfis the granddad- dy," he said, wielding a facsimile of 'ench artists. the large text, for visitors of the Nov. 29 public opening reception to flip through. "This started the move- ment of artists' books." it affinities of work are per- Eugenie Beall, the wife of Mr. re relevant," Paymal said. Beall and his partner collector, chibition last March of an described the singular quality of the popular artists Jacques this art form: "The tactility of a a French poet, and Alexan- book is something you cannot get der, an American sculptor, from a work hanging on a wall. It similar insight, but lacked is yours, it is part of your life, your sing scope and professional daily milieu." 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