The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom
'Rush' more
mainstream
done well
By ANTHONY BABER
Daily Arts Writer
It took six years after his first album
for Chicago rapper Twista finally to find
mainstream recognition with his 1997
AdrenalineRush. NotsinceBone Thugs-N-
Harmony had there been a rapper whose
flow came at such break-
neck speed and who spit
for the streets of the ***
Midwest. Now, curi-
ously, with several more TWista
studio albums under his
belt, Twista goes back Adrenaline
to that first success with Rush 2007
the aptly titled Adrena- Atlantic
line Rush 2007.
As a rap veteran
with at least 17 years in the game, Twista
knows what sells. Unfortunately, so does
everyone else in the industry, banking on
time-tested conventions of mainstream
rap. His flow is straight street: drug deals,
guns, chromed-out cars and jewelry. He
has a hard track with Lil Wayne ("Whip
Game Proper"), a catchy cut with T-Pain
("Creep Fast") and some ingenious pro-
duction from Southern producers (Cuzo,
Toxic, Jazze Pha). But there are a few
unexpected gestures as well.
As with every Twista album, there's a
hood symphony of horror-movie strings,
gunshots and ground-shaking bass with
the MC spitting high-speed lyrics that
pierce the melodies like bullets. The
best example of is "No Pistols," on which
Twista raps, "But you be procrastina-
tin' / I think you fuck around with pis-
tols cuz they fascinatin'." The fast-paced
Bhangra-style strings behind the click-
Nicely repackaging
all of the same,
tired conventions.
clack of a loaded gun let you know he
means business.
As a Chicago MC, Twista also plays
into two main types of music that Chi-
town feeds off: booty club music and
captivating step songs. "Pimp Like Me"
exhibits Midwest-style club bangers to
the fullest. The slow and heavy drums
that begin the song change into quick
snare taps and bass pops that get every-
body juking. And since the only thing
people love more than seeing R. Kelly on
the news is hearing him on a silky R&B -
track, they can experience "Love Rehab."
The Twista and Kellz collaboration is
reminiscent of past love songs done with
the likes of Mariah Carey and Trey Songz,
but the feeling of Chicago step records
(for which Kelly is notorious) lends the
track a decisive kick.
An even better collaborative club track
is the Jazze Pha-produced "Say Say."
With a bevy of Dirty South lyricists,
including Big Zak and Cee-Lo Green, the
song is perfect for the club with a melodi-
ous sound that will bring women to the
dance floor in a way only the South can.
Still, we're left with the same conven-
tions, and talented artist contributions
and masterful production will only get
you so far. There isn't much originality
in Twista's style or lyrics. It's the same
old "I got guns," "I got coke" verses on

every album but delivered at a speed that
could break the sound barrier. In 10 years,
there doesn't seem to be much individual
progress, and Twista just hasn't changed
much.
Simply put, Twista works well within
the norms of the genre. It's a good album
for bump riding down the street with the
bass up and the windows down, and the
blend of so many different styles is a solid
feat, but too many screwed up hooks and
repetitive lyrics can't change that it's the
same old Twists.

Monday, September 24, 2007- 5A

An insider photo of the Academy Awards and its judging process.

A 'Promise' in blood Russian mobster role

By BLAKE GOBLE a brutal, mournful observation of a
Daily Arts Writer man's struggle for humanity among
some of the most violent clans in the
S leek, lean and lethal, Niko- world.
lai Luzhin is a frighteningly This is, ultimately, the tragedy
efficient solider in the Vory V of Nikolai (Viggo Mortensen, "The
Salome, London's Lord of the Rings" films). The movie
Russian mafia. He's opens as a 14-year-old girl dies dur-
therecent recipient **** ing childbirth, leaving only the new-
of high honors, and born and a diary. Anna Khitrova (an
he flaunts it with Eastern assured Naomi Watts, "King Kong"),
a body covered in Promises a midwife, finds the girl's writings
imposing tattoos. and embarks on a search to find
But such badges At Quality16 the newborn's kin. In looking for
don't matter when and Showcase answers, the diary becomes a gate-
he's stark naked way into a dangerous other world.
in a Russian bath- Focus The diary unlocks a lifestyle of
house and about damaged souls driven by extreme
to be butchered. behavior, desperate for feeling. Mon-
Struggling and desperate, Nikolai strous violence is tradition. Through
must brawl with two bounty hunters the deals and drugs, the blood lingers
coming at him with knives. Nikolai is and stains. Reinforced in the maud-
scared, doggedly working to ensure lin texture (be it the music, clothing
his own life however he can. or general ambience) of exported
Graphic and haunting, this may Russian culture, there's a pervasive
be the classic scene of "Eastern feeling of loss. When Nikolai must
Promises," the moment that will be dispose of a body in a clean, techni-
immortalized later like the best of cal fashion, it's a perfect representa-
"Scarface" or "FightClub." It's the cli- tion of his mental state; fingers are
max of an unforgettable thriller from clipped off, the body is mutilated for
now-elder statesman David Cronen- disposal, but the tone is numb, com-
berg ("A History of Violence"), argu- pletely turned off from the ghastli-
ably his most accomplished work to ness at hand. The same could be said
date. A graphic gangland fantasia at for Nikolai.
surface level, "Eastern Promises" is Mortensen's Nikolai is a rich,

heavy, devastating character study.
This is a labyrinthine man, bold and
damaged. He's the real deal, and
"Eastern Promises" becomes Niko-
lai's film. A man with no past and a
shaky future, Nikolai is a brooding,
calculating assassin - at least on the
surface.
As soon as he hits the screen, his
cool is tested. He's calm, collected
and seemingly capable of anything
- this guy can put out a cigarette on
his tongue. But as Nikolai's charac,
ter is fleshed out, sadness rises to the
surface. Regret, worry and the long-
ing for an alternative become clear.
As with other tragic heroes like Mac-
beth or even Tony Soprano, this is a
man whose intricate power becomes
a burden. He loses his gangster man-
tra when you realize he isn't one.
He's just another person, and he's as
scared as anyone.
All of this is not to say'this is a star
vehicle. "Eastern Promises" is very
much David Cronenberg's movie,
and that is never in question. The
hardcore elements of his early
works ("The Brood," "Scan-
ners") dovetail with the dra-
matic nuances of his recent
"A History of Violence,"
which leads to filmmak-
ing mature and intel-
ligent but also fierce

and unrestrained. With heavy vio-
lence early on, Cronenberg shocks to
intrigue and lures you into a seedy,
layered underworld.
"Eastern Promises" is a rare expe-
rience, hard-driving and masterful.
It'll gnaw at you. Violent and some-
times hard to watch, the effect is sur-
prisingly cathartic and spiritual. This
is brutal, stark tragedy; people suffer,
and it couldn't be more mesmerizing.


Opportunistic'K-Ville'insults New Orleans

By ALEX ERIKSON
Daily Arts Writer
Emboldened dubiously by the
general state of chaos in The Big
Easy's lower
9th Ward, "K-
Ville," Fox's
new police
drama, is K-Ville
more exploit-
ative than Mondays
entertaining. at 9 p.m.
Typical of the Fox
network, the
show cashes
in on an absurdly sensitive issue,
one close to the hearts of all
involved, and does it without a
hint of dramatic sincerity or real

interest in its subject. In this
reviewer's mind, the people of K-
Ville should be outraged.
The premise is not without
merit; that police numbers in
New Orleans are significantly
lower than pre-Katrina is an
important, socially relevant
thread. It explains why Detec-
tive Marlin Boulet (Anthony
Anderson, "Transformers") gets
away with questionable methods
(he drinks on the job and tracks
leads by holding suspects under
water) and why, when he discov-
ers his new partner is actually an
escaped convict, he does nothing
about it.
The problems are in the exe-
cution. Nearly every character

has an inexpertly fabricated
New Orleans accent. This is more
than a small issue, since these
are supposedly the cops most
committed to the city and with
the deepest roots. Instead their
accents freely roam from slightly
Midwest to strongly N'Orleans
and back again. These seemingly
minor details compound on the
ham-fisted nature of the drama.
The show's creative force also
missed a monumental oppor-
tunity in that it pays very little
homage to New Orleans's rich
culture. The blues was essential-
ly born there, and many of those.
affected by the devastation were
important figures in the New
Orleans music scene. Rather

than inspiring, the soundtrack
is distinctly bland to the point
of cultural insensitivity. Both
the intro and closing music is
cookie-cutter rap with little sig-
nificance to the plot. The only
reference to the city's music cul-
ture is a shooting thatrtakes place
at a jazz club.
Another miscue, one that
pales in comparison to the
show's more alarming faults,
is the complete miscasting -of
Anderson. He is clearly trying
to step out of his typecast fun-
nyman roles and into something
more mature. But it's hard to
take Anderson seriously for most
of the pilot episode - his accent
and tough guy persona are poor-

ly portrayed.
More than that, "K-Ville"
lacks both punch and the abil-
ity to fill the niche among the
rest of Fox's action lineup. The
show's blandness shines before
every commercial break: The
last image is frozen in black and
white, followed by an overly dra-
matized "Law and Order"-esque
bell ring. It seems the writers
are throwing salt on their own
wounds. It's obvious they're try-
ing way too hard.
Eventually, one wonders what
the point of the show actually
is. It doesn't accurately portray
New Orleans, it isn't a prestige
piece for Fox, it isn't fun - it fails
on all accounts.


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or email Derek Blunke at dhlumke@uroiich.edu

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