The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com
Monday, April 9, 2007 - 5A
ARTS IN BRIEF
Finding
perfect
'Pitch'
ANIMAL COLLECTIVE'S
LENNOX TRIUMPHS
ON 'PERSON PITCH'
By MATT KIVEL
Daily Music Editor
"Coolness is having courage" says Noah
Lennox (aka Panda Bear) in the opening min-
utes of Person Pitch. The simple credo aptly
defines an album that ia decidedly "uncool"
and out of step with cur-
rent musical trends. As with * * ,
the eclectic discography of
Lennox's primary artistic Panda Bear
outlet, Animal Collective,
the music on Person Pitch Person Pitch
feels like an aural incarna- pw mrn-k
tion of art btut or "outsider PwTak
art." His repetitive and sim-
plistic chord structures and naive lyrics recall
the damaged brilliance of other "outsider"
musicians like Syd Batrett or Daniel Johnston:
"When my soul starts glowing/When my soul
starts growing / I am as I want to be / And I
know I never will stop growing."
Person Pitch begins with a consistent thud
of swelling handclaps and vocal chants, over
which Lennox's voice soars into a deliber-
ate melodic ascent. The music's texture is
dense, with each instrument blending into
one another in swarm bed of reverb and tape
loops. Unlike in2004's YoungPrayer, the songs
are immediately inclusive and invite listeners
to share in the communal aspects of Lennox's
vision. The repetitive vocal calls and pound-
ing rhythm of "Comfy in Nautica" make for an
inspiring sing-a-long, while the chopped-up
samples and joyous acoustic strains of "Bros'
lend themselves to the late-night dance floor.
The song structures can be defined as a sort
of "pop-raga," blending sugary '60s pop with
the repetitive modes of Indian raga. "Good Girl
/ Carrots" isbuilton a loop of tribal drums that
pulsate rapidly beneath Panda Bear's heav-
ily echoed vocals. The composition stretches
for nearly 13 minutes and reveals itself to be
a sound collage of intricate construction. A
wealth of dynamically placed samples and
atmospheric flourishes dive in and out of the
cluttered soundscape, creating a web of sound
tha continuouslyevolves and transforms. This
piece is Lennox's tour de force, and its slowly
TV
When marriage
ends in murder
** K
"'Til Death Do Us Part"
Mondays at 10 p.m.
Court TV
There's something unsettling
about John Waters's pencil-thin
mustache and gaunt figure. The
ghost-like cult director ("Hair-
spray") sets the tone of Court TV's
"Til Death Do Us Part," offering
appropriate doses of gaudy froth
and malice to a series about spou-
sal murder. Waters's casting pro-
vides the perfect accompaniment
to the show's lurid stories.
"Til Death Do Us Part" is Court
TV's attempt at fictional televi-
sion, drawing facts from true
stories of matrimonial homicide.
The tone is unabashedly satiri-
cal, and scenes often seem stolen
from an episode of "Days of Our
Lives." This may be cold-blooded
FILM
Swank braves
plagues, South
"The Reaping"
At Quality 16 and Showcase
Warner Bros.
The devil made them do it.
That's the only explanation for
director Stephen Hopkins ("Under
Suspicion") and two-time Academy
Award winner Hilary Swank being
involved in the abysmal new horror
movie "The Reaping."
Swank plays Katherine Winter,
a one-time minister who has lost
her faith. After a spiritual 180, she
now investigates so-called mira-
cles in order to debunk them with
scientific explanations. After all
photos of her begin to burn spon-
taneously, she's warned by her old
murder, but it's all in good fun.
Waters, the self-described
"Groom Reaper," serves as host,
narrating the similar tales of
deceit over the show's low-bud-
get productions. Even the actors
seem to be just barely concealing
a smirk.
"Til Death Do Us Part" has
no redeeming moral character,
acting credentials or production
value. It's harmless fluff with
all the attributes of an excel-
lent guilty pleasure, especially
for those just coming out of a
relationship - or with an innate
aversion to marriage. The show
to some extent suggests that mat-
rimony is a death certificate to
be avoided at all costs, and while
many will find this a repulsive
concept, others can revel in its
irreverence. Scorned lovers or
betrayed spouses might even find
it therapeutic to watch these fic-
tional representations of their
darkest desires. Just remember
to take that aggression out on the
Ben and Jerry's - not the ex.
BEN MEGARGEL
friend Father Costigan (Stephen
Rea, "V for Vendetta") that her life
is in danger. When all the burned
pictures are put together they form
- gasp! - a scythe, which is some-
how construed as the mark of the
devil. This clearly isn't a good sign.
Soon Katherine is called into a
small town called Haven to inves-
tigate what appears to be a case of
the 10 Biblical plagues and discov-
ers an 11th - classic horror movie
cliches. There's the creepy blonde
child with dead eyes and even a
"huge" "twist" at the end. Eventu-
ally Katherine figures everything
out, gains some faith, sees some
miracles and so on.
"The Reaping" joins the long
line of pro-faith movies debunking
the secular skeptic. The filmmakes
a huge fuss over God and whether
or not He actually exists. One thing
is for sure: If someone is watching
over us, Swank and Hopkins better
watch their backs.
SHERI JANKELOVITZ
Obvious metaphor, no?
unraveling texture and poignant melodic
interludes are a testament to his growth as a
disciplined and patient composer.
"Bros" is the other major achievement on
this record. Its core melody sounds like a lost
Brian Wilson vocal from Surfs Up or Smiley
Smile, complete with rattling percussion and
chiming guitar refrains. Lennox's obvious
debt to The Beach Boys has been examined ad
nauseam in critical assessments of his work,
but here he sounds less like the band and more
like the fire-hat-wearing, sand-box-building
mastermind himself, Brian Wilson. In the late
'60s, during and after the making of the failed
Smile album, Wilson's music retained a spon-
taneity and whimsical desperation - a reflec-
tion of a man who had surpassed his creative
limits. Songs like "A Day in the Life of a Tree"
and "Surf's Up" are both fragile and transcen-
dent, but never predictable, offering spontane-
ous instrumental and harmonic changes. That
is the Beach Boys material Person Pitch evokes
most - music that is simultaneously joyous
and sorrowful, sweet and damaged, brimming
with emotions that seem to contradict one
another but manage to cohabitate in a focused
release of cathartic expression.
Where Wilson's work reflected an impend-
ing mental implosion, Person Pitch represents
an exorcism of Lennox's internal demons.
This is music that invites listeners to share in
Courtesy of Paw Tracks
TOP FIVE "UNCOOL" POP ALBUMS
1. Biff Rose The Thorn in Mrs. Rose's Side: A shambling
collection of cabaret-pop songs sung in Rose's sprightly
croon. These songs are mini-masterpieces, brimming with
wide-eyed optimism and some truly bizarre and humorous
lyrics.
2. Syd Barrett The Madcap Laughs: Aftersgettingthe boot
from Pink Floyd, Barrett pulled himselfttogether and recorded
his back catalogue oftwhimsical and painfully naive songs.
A hallucinatory aural account of LSD excess and mental
breakdown.
3. Daniel Johnston Hi How Are You?: Brilliant, bizarre,
inconsistent. Call Daniel Johnston what you will: These songs
are poignant and life affirming in all the ways traditional pop
is meant to be.
4. Screamin' Jay Hawkins Cowfingers and Mosquito Pie: A
compilation of Hawkins's best work, running the gamut from
full-throated doo-wop to abrasive voodoo chants.
5. Skip Spence Oar: Afternassaulting a few of his Moby Grape
band mates with an axe, Skip Spence locked himself in the
studio and emerged two weeks laterwith a genuinelytfucked-
up album of hypnotic blues, rural folk and musique concrete.
the artist's world, to surrender themselves to
the repetition of the melodies and to heal the
wounds of experience.
U U
...............
E t FREE SPIRIT
AF GE RDAINWID
Find a job before you outstay your welcome.
Post-grad careers, part-time jobs and internships.
Go online or text "CBcampus" to 68247.*
Am 1-14.Com'
""". ' as ar bu ' F ditte F
Wondering if you're making the right career decisions? Get your questions answered with
30-Minute Mentors, brought to you by the Alumni Association.
Meet one-on-one with a U-M alum in a casual setting and find out what his or her job
is like. Ask the questions you want. Does your major matter? Is there a lot of traveling?
What do you like and dislike? What are the hours like?
This is your chance to get your questions answered from someone who knows. It could
be the most important 30 minutes you spend on campus this spring.
When: Friday, April 13
Sessions offered from 10 a.m.-3:15 p.m.
Pick the time that fits your schedule.
Where: Alumni Center, 200 Fletcher St., at the corner of Fletcher and
Washington, next to the Michigan League and across from MLB.
Who: Alumni in a variety of career fields, including marketing,
finance, advertising and sponsorship sales, consulting, law,
A .y WA engineering, journaism and more. Go online for
details on the alums and their professions.
The spots are limited and will be filled on a
first-come, first-served basis so sign up today! ALUMNIASSOCIATION
UNIVERSITY OF MICHIGAN
www.umalumni.com/students Uniting the Leaders and Best
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