8A - Monday, February 1, 2010 The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com BA - Monday, February 1, 2010 The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Dentistry museum sparkles The Sindecuse Museum of Dentistryis an exhibit you can sink your teeth into By Anu ArumugamI Daily Arts Writer^ I want to spoon - with Spoon The University hosts one of the few museums in the world specifi- cally dedicated to honoring the Sindecuse discipline of - believe it or not Museum of - dentistry. The Sinde- cuse Museum Mondays of Dentistry through is scattered Fridays,8 a.m. throughout the to6 p.m. School of Den- W.K. Kellogg Institute tistry and the W.K. Kellogg Institute Building. Named after Dr. Gordon Sindecuse, a Universi- ty alum, the museum was created in 1992 to preserve dental para- phernalia and recognize the fusion of art and dentistry. The museum contains over 12,000 objects, but only 15 percent of these artifacts are put on display due to lack of space. Most of the items are kept in drawers, portfolios and rolling racks under carefully monitored temperatures to battle decay. Amber Ostaszewski, an LSA sophomore on staff at the museum, described Sindecuse as a "dental cabinet of curiosity." "At the lobby, we have a repre- sentation of a mid-20th-century dental office and a progression of early x-ray equipment," Ostasze- wski wrote in an e-mail interview. "Upstairs are two cabinets that deal with the groundbreaking scientific research by one of our very own alumi, Dr. Willoughby D. Miller, a pioneer of dentistry in the early 1900's. "In the Atrium, one can find archaic dental units, featuring ivo- ry-handled dental instruments and Victorian, velvet-upholstered dental chairs, complete with chandelier lights," she continued. "The remaining part of the museum is located down a hallway, and features cases of vintage dental products,-as well as dentures, artic- ulators and other miscellaneous items." Essentially, the Sindecuse Muse- um is a place for students at the University to learn about the his- tory of dentistry, particularly the events that took place here at Michi- gan. The Sindecuse Museum is also home to diverse expressions of den- tal art. Visitors can see parts of a beau- tiful, multi-hued mural portraying the "Legend of Paul Bunyan," cre- ated by painter Francis E. Danov- ich. Extraordinarily imaginative sculptures, including a face made purely out of orthodontic instru- ments and created by dentist and sculptor Dr. Eugene Buatti, are also on display. According to Curator and Muse- um Director Shannon O'Dell, the museum, though officially 18 years old, had been in utero for several decades. "The collection actually was started even before Dr. Sindecuse gave the funds to begin a museum," she wrote in an email interview. "For several decades before the start of the museum in 1992, there were dental faculty, like Dr. Charles Kelsey and Professor Al Richards and our dental librarian, Sue Segar, who took responsibility for preserv- ing and storing historical equipment or photos and documents that speak to the history of the profession and to the school itself. "So, in essence, the museum began because of an appreciation and admiration for the history of dentistry." Regardless of whether one is interested in dentistry, Sindecuse contains intriguing pieces that reveal an artistic side to the field, as evident by the experience of Emma Wolman, the museum's Web con- tent editor. "I didn't really know anything about the dental profession when I started working here last fall," Wol- man wrote in an e-mail interview. "It turns out there's a long and interesting history worth consider- ing. The way dental practices have evolved with technological and sci- entific advances is pretty interest- ing." "I never thought about what it might be like to get a cavity filled before modern anesthetics were introduced, or in the days before electricity," she wrote. "Now I've thought about it. I bet it was unpleasant." No matter how much the medi- eval-looking torture devices make you squirm or how boring dental history may seem, a visit to this lit- tle-known showcase is truly a jaw- dropping experience. For those of you who fol- low the ratings game, the votes are in, and the best band of the last decade was officially - gasp - Spoon. At least according to Metacritic, the Inter- net's leading JOSHUA aggregator of BAYER art reviews. So what does this mean exactly? It means that, out of all the bands who have had three or more albums reviewed on this particular web- site, Spoon's average album score was the highest (clocking in at an 85.3 out of 100, scooting just in front of Sigur R6s with 83.5 and Super Furry Animals with 82.5). I know what you're thinking: So the fuck what? These are just numbers. These averages don't even remotely represent a band's staying power or innova- tive scope, nor do they represent people's individual opinions. Just because Spoon had the highest average album score of the decade doesn't mean any individual human actually thinks they were the best band of the decade - or even that they're anyone's favorite band, period. But let's stop for a second and actually talk about the band itself. Spoon. What a perfect name for such a deceptively simple group. Hailing from Austin, Texas, these perpetual indie-rock underdogs - at least until their 2007 single "The Underdog" ironically flirted with mainstream radio appeal - aren't out to the change the world. Like any layman's spoon, Spoon (the band) is bright without being flashy. As my kid brother once said, "My issue with Spoon is that I feel like I could play all of their songs." And I don't doubt him. The band's riff-heavy formula of drums, bass, guitar and keys, without much technical virtuos- ity or formal innovation, sounds pretty vanilla on paper. And it can be argued that frontman Britt Daniel essentially doesn't know how to play the guitar. His parts usually consist of an angu- lar back-and-forth between a few simple chords, and his solos rarely elevate above the ground of electrified scribbling. But, like any great band, Spoon knows how to write a great song. And even if you think you could play all of their songs while wiping your ass, the truth is you didn't write them. And you probably couldn't either. The component parts of Spoon's music are anything but special - wiry drums, ghostly keys, sharp-toothed guitars and tire-thick basslines. But the way Spoon's songs play out is nothing less than spellbinding. Spoon's aesthetic may sound simple on the surface, but if you actually PICKERS From Page 5A even the less common estate sale. Antique Archeology's type of antiquing is just a bit shady. However, Wolfe and Fritz do have a passion for the last two of the three R's (reduce, reuse, recycle), and admittedly know quite a bit about history. It's just difficult to see how any pleasure could be mixed into this business. Sure, the partners restore and sell artifacts, bringing antiques into the present day. But perk your ear up for more than 30 seconds, you'll quickly notice that the band is the epitome of OCD-caliber perfection. All of Spoon's composi- tions are fussed over to the nth degree, with every last handclap and shaker burst stabbing into the mix at exactly the right moment. While Spoon's practi- cally minimalistic sound feels almost frustratingly unadorned and empty at times, Spoon is undeniably a studio band. The gaping void felt between the monomaniacal drum machine pulse and the spare keyboard jit- ters on songs like "Small Stakes" is purely intentional - when the tambourine kicks in halfway through the track, it feels like a revelation rather than a flourish. Moreover, the band has eas- ily written some of the catchi- est songs of the past decade. Britt Daniel is a hook machine. Every cocksure "whoo-hoo" and clipped syllable that half-fires half-tumbles out of his mouth is chewy enough to build an entire song around. "The Way We Get By" even managed to sneak its way onto the soundtrack for "The O.C." But where Spoon truly shines is its rhythm section - which is, essentially, the entire band. While Britt Daniel's guitar skills have never really graduated beyond garage band status, he is a master when it comes to writ- ing a hook and shredding it up rhythmically over the course of a song. He may be playing the same note over and over again, but he throws enough cork- screws in there to keep you on the edge of your seat. And as far as basslines go, Spoon trumps all - I don't know what they put in their sound waves to get such fat, rubbery bass throbs, but I do Spoon may not be band of the decade, but it's still damn good. know that Spoon is going to be at least one-third of the reason I go deaf before 50. So is Spoon the band of the decade? Probably not. While they've continuously twisted their formula enough to juice four stellar albums out of little more than an ungodly penchant for airtight production and spring-loaded timing, they're just not massive enough in scale to ever match up against a behe- moth like Radiohead. But they just might have been the most consistent band of the decade. And if this month's unsurpris- ingly stellar Transference is any indication, they just might keep trucking along into the '10s. Bayer is looking for more cutlery bands to follow. To inform him, e-mail jrbayer@umich.edu. the people they buy them from don't seem too well off. If the sale were a bit more fair-trade, "Amer- ican Pickers" would be easier to watch without that annoying pang of guilt - the kind that hits upon entering a nursing home. History is often a reputable source for shows like "American Pickers." If Wolfe and Fritz just tone down the predatory coer- sion, the basis of the series could shine through. Learning about antiques isn't always fascinating, but it becomes even less so when it means cheating the people who have preserved them thus far. 0 0 Showtime is off in 'La La Land' By ROBERT SOAVE Daily Arts Writer There's an early moment in the premiere episode of Showtime's "La La Land," when British comedian Marc Woot- ton ("Confetti") - portray- ing an aspiring actor named Gary Garner - insists he has L8 La Land what it takes to make it in Hollywood. As he recites this Mondays mantra, obscure actress Ruta at11p.m. Lee repeatedly tells him that Showtime he isn't talented. She might as well be talking to Wootton himself, who is as amateurish as the characters he portrays in "La La Land." The premise is strikingly similar to Sacha Baron Cohen's comedy-reality hybrid "Da Ali G Show." Wootton pretends to be three differ- ent characters who attempt to launch careers in the entertainment world by interacting with various pseudo-celebrities. Though each of Wootton's characters has a distinct (and cringe-worthy) appearance, it's hard to distin- guish their personalities from each other since they're all so clueless and annoying. Gary may be the most annoying, though documentary filmmaker Brendan Allen is definitely the most boring. As for effeminate, celebrity-channeling psychic Shirley Ghostman, he's impossible to even comprehend. The main problem for Wootton is that Cohen already exists - and thanks to the rela- tive theatrical success of "Borat" and "Bruno," everybody is pretty familiar with his work. Because "La La Land" shares so many obvious similarities with "Da Ali G Show," it's impos- sible not to compare the two. Unfortunately, Wootton doesn't weather such a comparison very well. Cohen was successful because he exposed racism, homophobia and stupidity in the peo- ple he interviewed - from regular Americans to U.S. politicians. Wootton seemingly does just the opposite. The arrogant, empty-headed Hollywood regulars he interacts with are obvi- ously idiots, but Wootton ends up making them seem smart and sympathetic when compared with the unbearably irritating Gary, Shirley and Brendan. Yes, there are some laughs now and then. Ghostman probably succeeds most often at generating funny moments, and it's clear that this character (who had his own short-lived TV show in the U.K.) is the one Wootton is most comfortable playing. But why does Shir- ley have a woman's name and hairstyle when the character is supposed to be a man? Is this part of the joke? It's unanswerable questions like this one that make all three of them seem pretty random. Absent the political and social satire that made "Da Ali G Show" so memorable, "La La Land" leaves its viewers wondering, "So what?" After all, no one needs to watch a show about Hollywood to know that the people who live there aren't very personable. What, then, is Wootton preaching? That the British have Like Al G, but played by an actual moron. a weird sense of humor? That the people at Showtime who greenlit "La La Land" made a serious mistake? Ali G, Borat and Bruno may be retired, but if what the world needs is another Sacha Baron Cohen, somebody other than Marc Wootton needs to step up. It's clear that his sense of humor is, well, off inla la land. 0 "Blue's Clues" gone horribly wrong. CAMPESINOS! From Page 5A bedroom door, ignore your mom's bogus pleas to "turn it down" and give into your tormented teenage soul. The saga unfolds with "In Medias Res," a track that's so schmaltzy it's almost too much to swallow. Through a backdrop of twinkling keys, listeners are taken through a world of carefree adolescence where teens steal vodka out of their parent's cupboards and ponder the significance of life on soul- searching joy rides. Ah, to be young! Still, the standouts are the songs in which frontman Gareth Campesinos shamelessly unravels the depths of his besieged twentysomething soul. His achy, moody vocals were made for self- pity. Tracks "The Sea is a Good Place to Think of the Future" and "Coda: A Burn Scar in the Shape of the Sooner State" mark the band's venture into the sol- emn, atmospheric unknown. While it may seem juvenile for Los Campesinos! to use suchemotionallydrainingthemes in the track titles, these outfits prove to be anything but amateur. In these epic ballads, the band dis- plays tremendous musical growth. On "Future" a slow buildup of delicate violins plays over Gareth's fittingly whispered vocals until the fragile still- ness is broken by crashing cymbals and coarse shouts. The track's subject mat- ter leaves listeners feeling like power- less, sympathetic bystanders. Gareth describes a girl coping with an eating disorder and who is ultimately lost in the confusion of transcending from adolescence to adulthood. The ballad's chorus ("all you can hear is the sound of your own heart") sets a vulnerably raw tone. Through tumultuous waves of sound, Gareth's realization that there isn't always "a light at the end of the tunnel" is ach- ingly heartbreaking. With tracks like "Future," Los Campesinos!'s geeky indie-pop guise is forgone by the way of beautifully composed ballads. According to the band, Romance is Boring is "about death and decay of the human body, sex, lost love, mental breakdown and football." It's only natu- ral for a band composed of a bunch of hormonal youths going through those awkward growing pains to let their music be a source of catharsis. With Romance is Boring, Los Campesinos! prove that they are capable of more than Converse-kickin' beats and the cookie- cutter pop persona. Here's hoping Los Campesinos! will continue to experi- ment with moodier themes and instru- mental backdrops. 0 0 "Look happier. We have to earn that damn exclamation point!"