The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com Friday, March 28, 2008 - 5 New 'rap-rock'group avoids genre's stigma Awkward youth Teen indie-punk group returns with a mature and coherent second album By SASHA RESENDE DailyArts Writer By BRIAN HAAGSMAN DailyArts Writer The combination of rap and rock can be dangerous. Turn-of-the-millennium bands like Limp Bizkit and Crazy Town are the warning label, displayingthe sheer mag- Why? nitude of musical dev- " astation that can occur Friday at when the two elements 8 p.m. are put in the wrong At Pierpont hands. Fortunately, Oak- Commons land Bay Area quartet $8forstudents Why? knows how to manage this mixture. The band will bring its mixture of harsh percussion, peculiar sampfes, resonating piano and acoustic instruientation beneath the bitter croon- ing and staccato flow of vocalist Yoni Wolf to Pierpont Commons this Friday. Why? started as an outlet for Yoni Wolf's solo self-recordings. Growing up in Ohio, Yoni found a four-track recorder in his father's synagogue. The four-track demanded that Wolf add more and more layers of samples while singing and rap- ping in a nasalvoice. The rest is history. (In a interview with Wolf, he only confirmed that he got his start with a four-track from the synagogue where his father was a rabbi and described these initial efforts as "layer-by-layer" recording, but after lis- tening to the products of this early experi- mentation, the embellishments seem plausible enough.) This early approach of sound collage and raw vocals led to a split EP and even- tually to Wolf's 2003 full-length debut as Why?, Oaklandazulasylum, on the then- fresh Oakland-based hip-hop label An- ticon. Some time after the release of Oaklandazulasylum, Why? expanded from Wolf's solo experiments with layering to a full band's experiments with layering. 2005 saw the results of this in the form of the Sanddollars EP and the second full- length Elephant Eyelash, which received widespread praise from critics and fans alike. Elephant Eyelash showed the band's increased input of enthralling moments, like the multiple climaxes of "Waterfalls" - piano notes from separate airy melodies reverberate and tie into each other before quickly fading. They are supported by the rhythmic clanks of drumsticks on jars, the friction'of paper on paper and the deep thuds of drums behind cutting-but-senti- mental chants of "Your face never forgets a cry / Like trace remnants of acid in your spine." Other standout tracks like "Yo Yo Bye Bye" play with more electronic sound- scapes and beats to create a soft landing for Wolf's delivery of lines like "I'm fuck- ing cold like a DQ Blizzard." But on Why?'s weeks-old third LP Alo- pecia, the band achieves this same success in a slightly different way. The album fea- tures the band acting surprisingly more like a group. Wolf points to change in the recording style as the reason. "Elephant Eyelash we did as a band, but in a home recording setting, so one track at a time, in a very, sort of, meticulous layer-by-layer sort of fashion," he said. But Alopecia moved away from the style They rap. They rock. But that doesn't mean they're like Limp Bizkit. he had worked with since the beginning. "Alopecia we recorded pretty much live as a band in the studio. This is our first time recording in a studio with Why?" said Wolf "It made everything sort of a lot more immediate. I think it gives it its own probably more organic quality." Alopecia maintains the samples and Why?'s knack for swelling piano and per- cussion throughoutc- most impressively on the catchy, slow jam "Simeon's Dilemma" - but with more guitars and simple bass lines. Songs like "Fatalist Palmistry" and "Brook & Waxing" sound strangely like indie-rock. Without sacrificing energy or surprises, Alopecia shows that the current sound of Why? is thanks to four guys play- ing instruments, not fiddling with knobs. It's an exciting template to apply Why?'s sound to, and one that should be able to thrive in front of a live audience. hen the adoles- cent-powered punk group Be Your Own Pet hit the scene in 2006 with their self-titled debut, I lamented that the group came four years too late. My inner fourteen-year-old self loved the album - a mix of playground taunting, teen- age aggression and unadulter- ated street speed. Com- plete with the under- .Y age, stage- minded Own Pet lead singerG JeminaPearl GetAwkward Abegg - Ecstatic Peace who quickly garnered comparisons to the Yeah Yeah Yeahs's renowned frontwom- an Karen 0 - the Nashville- based group created a fan base of punk devotees who missed the genre's uncensored bel- ligerence but preferred to skip out on the movement's more violent connotations. Comprised almost entirely of high schoolers, the band filled this niche and received atten- tion for its youth and undeni- able talent. On its sophomore attempt, Get Awkward, Be Your Own Pet tones down its previously unchecked aggres- sion without compromising the haughty attitude that put the group on the radar. , Naturally, making music dictated by punk's "fuck everything" ethos is going to raise some eyebrows. As such, it's hardly a surprise that cer- tain songs on Get Awkward's U.S. release through Ecstatic Peace were cut by Universal Records, the label's distribu- tor. Universal claimed that three songs on the album were "too violent" for U.S. listen- ers - a bold claim from a label that, has released albums by Hatebreed and Marilyn Man- " son. The label couldn't com- promise its commitment to "family-friendly" media by fully supporting a band that is fronted by a precocious, blonde-haired20-year-oldgal, who is notorious for her wild C. stage persona and for scream- ti ing on her newest record that w she "wants you so bad inside e it hurts!" The band's interna- s tional label, XL Recordings, li found nothing objectionable si on the record and released it gl on March 18 with the three / banned tracks:"Becky,""Black n Hole" and "Blow Yr Mind." is The most noticeable differ- m ence between Get Awkward rE and the group's debut is the ft gradual elimination of min- a: ute-long filler tracks of pure k punk mayhem - which com- prised the bulk of the Be Your is Own Pet LP - in favor of finely is tuned songs with a more pop P sensibility. This is apparent on w "Creepy Crawll" where Abegg o becomes a hybrid between a w laid-back Karen 0 and a quirky d Peaches as she narrates the oft- m told story of agirl who feelslost si within her failed relationship. g Thisprogressiostowards more 1 listener-friendly jams is con- / an you identify the indie kid who stole your Chucks? nued with "You're A Waste," 'hich vaguely sounds like an arly No Doubt track. Also, the ong is incredibly relatable for steners, as Abegg muses pas- ve-aggressively "Now I'm lad you've got a broken heart 'Cause I've been trying to fix iine from the start." The song the record's closest approxi- iation to a love ballad, as the est of the album breaks away or fast-paced proto-punk nthems about food fights and illin' bitches. "Super Soaked" is a solid ntegration of the two prevail- ng aspects of Be Your Own et's musical formula. As 'ith the ass-kicking album pener, the cut is a havoc- 'recking anthem to teenage ebauchery and drug-fueled iayhem. Quick paced guitar trings highlight Abegg's sexy rowl, as she announces "Just 9 when I lost all my dignity! Today's my birthday, now I'm 20! / Don't wanna have responsibility! / Don't wanna be a part of society!" Despite this borderline nihilistic out- look, the track is fairly acces- sible and quickly propels the listener into Be Your Own Pet's world of wild partying, fast three-cAord progressions and pure adrenaline. The band channels its not- too-distant past with its bare- boned punk cuts ("Bummer Time" and "Food Fight!"), which are based largely on the band's repeated chanting and simple guitar chords. While these unembellished punk tracks are what propelled the band to early underground fame, Be Your Own Pet maturesbeyondsimple,anger- fueled madness on their latest release. With Get Awkward, the band proves that it has the ability to channel its quirky punk foundations while con- tinuing to mature as a group. ARTS IN BRIEF Television Verdict on new sitcom: dark depiction of real life "Canterbury's Law" Fridays at 9 p.m. FOX bodies percussively. The program notes ascribe part of the choreogra- phy to the companies themselves: "In collaboration with the dancers." This seems a natural extension of the facts of how the collaboration came about - with patience and openness, over three years. "Les 6cailles" covers a lot of ground, thematically discuss- ing memory, love and resistance - and aesthetically, switching up the dancers, styles, costumes and lan- guages often. Both companies have ample critical acclaim under 20 T-7-7* . --... Elizabeth Canterbury, heroine of Fox's new drama their belts. Both "Canterbury's Law," isn't a prophet like Eli Stone, awards. It's Con isn't immortal like John Amsterdam and doesn't have UBW's first app superhuman strength like the Bionic Woman. But colaboration sho that's OE, because Canterbury totally kicks ass at her job - and the result is quality television without all the fantasy fluff. Performance Preview Canterbury (Julianna Margulies, "The Sopra- Shaw's nos") is a hardoosed attorney who defends the most Sh w vile, reprehensible clients - and usually wins. But although she dominates in the courtroom, her tragic W algreen personal life constantly takes a toll on her. A failing marriage and a missing child are just some of the "You Never Can issues that Canterbury has to deal with, as well as At the Walgreen maintaining her reputation as the city's most feared Thursday, April 3 public defender. Friday, March 28 "Canterbury's Law" is a dark and cold depiction of Saturday, March a world where people exist only to use one another Sunday, March 31 for information, comfort or sexual gratification. The $9 for students, $ characters are dynamic, which is to be expected from have received the notable "Bessie" mpagnie Jant-Bi's debut here and pearance since 1994. The unlikely uld be a fruitful one. ABIGAIL B. COLODNER ama comes to life at Drama Center Tell" Drama Center at 7:30 p.m. & April 4 at 8 p.m. 29 & April 5 at 8 p.m. 0 & April 6at 2 p.m. 24 general admission executive producer Denis Leary, whose production, "Rescue Me," is known for i personalities. Forget superpowers - "Canterb demands attention because of its realist struggling to master their professional lives. Performance Preview When two worlds colli African-influenced dan Les tcailles de la Memoire (The Scales Urban Bush Women and Compagnie Ja At the Power Center for the Performing Friday, March 28, 8 p.m. Sat., March 29, 8 p.m. $10- $40 At the Conference of Contemporary in 2004 two choreographers met and t faith. Despite the fact their respective panies spoke different languages (one Wolof), worked in far-flung cities (one one near Dakar) and functioned un dance aesthetics (one is all-female, one they had work to do together. The midpoints they found are in athle styles that grew organically from African tions and a concern for the concept beh ing. UMS's program and supplementar that the Urban Bush Women's idea-driv cuss the enfranchisement of women an Diaspora. They're no shrinking violets ers are athletic and forthright, using the other current This year, the Theatre and Drama department has ts memorable chosen one of George Bernard Shaw's lesser-known plays, "You Never Can Tell," for its annual spring bury's Law" play. The show will run tonight through April 6 at the tic characters (Arthur Miller Theatre) Walgreen Drama Center on and personal North Campus. The play revolves around a mother and her three DAVE REAP children who have just returned to England after an la-year exile in Madeira. Upon their arrival, the Clandon family meets the rigid social hierarchy of 20th century England with a le in shock. Suddenly, the absence of the children's father becomes more visibfe to society, and their mother ice - who ended her marriage after leaving England - is hesitant to share with her children their father's of Memory) identity. It's their visit to the dentist that alters their nt-Bi fate when, by coincidence, they meet their father. Arts What ensues is a humorous and witty dialogue as familial relationships are recreated. This play isn't just fun and games, though. Shaw's social commentary reveals itself with themes of child rearing, courtship and families. Art in Florida "Shaw never wrote anything without social reper- ook a leap of cussions," said guest director, Priscilla Lindsay, the dance com- associate artistic director at the Indiana Repertory English, one Theatre. "The language of this play and ideas they in Brooklyn, talk about is what is important." der different The 11 cast members, picked from the 85 who audi- e is all-male), tioned, began practicing in February with rehearsals six days a week. The intimate space created at the ticism, dance Arthur Miller Theatre lends flexibility to the actors n dance tradi- to move about in what Lindsay calls a "transforma- ind the dane- tive space." y notes, state "Their ability to adjust to direction is remarkable en pieces dis- for actors, and they doit with not only grace but with d the African skill," Lindsay said. "They speak Shaw's words with - the danc- great facility," Thurs day, ApriL 3, 2008 5- 8 p.m. Move On 2008: 9fedinq atamni OcwaA am&vkc Your Alumni Association will provide you with all the information you'll need as you move on from Ann Arhor to cities across America. And who doesn't Love a good road trip? Did you know that there are more than 8,000 Michigan alumni in Los Angeles? And more than 3,000 in Atlanta and Denver? Use the power of the Michigan alumni network to make your next move a snap! -top by the Alumni Center anytime between 5 p.m. and 8 p.m. to get information and resources on elocating. The first 300 students will receive a retro T-shirt, free food, .ames and activities! ur spot today at umni.com/ students. ALUMNI ASSOCIATION UNIVERSITY-OF MICHIGAN eir voices and PRIYA BALI