* The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com

Thursday, A pril 8, 2010 - 3B

Tyra Banks taught
me model behavior

Groove Spoon found its name on an online random name generator.
One band, 10 musicians

Funky Groove Spoon
brings a big-band
feel to the 'U'
By ADDIE SHRODES
Daily Arts Writer
Ten distinct musicians stream
into a dingy basement crowded
with instru-
ments and Groove Spoon
sound equip-
ment on a Tomorrow
sleepy Tuesday at 9 p.m.
night. Yet the The Blind Pig
somber walls Tickets from $7
begin to buzz
as the collective energy reaches a
crescendo.
And the band hasn't even started
jamming.
This might be your typical band
practice space, but Groove Spoon is
certainly not your typical band.
Drummer Jack Stratton, a Music,
Theatre&Dance senior, started the
band about two years ago, but this
year Groove Spoon went through
an overhaul.
The band sculpted its self-
described funk music with the
addition of eight members, includ-
ing Engineering senior Nathan
Zukoff, who books the band's gigs.
LSA senior Antwaun Stanley
joined as lead vocalist after he took
a sound recording class with Strat-
ton and Zukoff, in which they col-
laborated on a class project that
would become one of the band's
singles, "Simple Step."
After adding Stanley, Stratton
filled out the band with people he
admired both musically and as per-
sonalities.
"It came down to who we want to
play with, but it also came down to
a who we want to be around," Strat-

ton explained. "There are some
musicians who are very emotional.
They're amazing to play with, but
you don't really want to be in a
basement with them once a week."
The band, made up exclusively
of University students, is now a
10-piece ensemble with vocals,
horns and a rhythm section includ-
ing guitar and bass. Stratton said 10
members is the minimum to pro-
duce "that big, live sound."
The key to "staying tight," Strat-
ton said, has been committing to
weekly rehearsals this year.
"Because everyone has such
expertise and creativity, the musi-
cal innovation that's happening is
unbelievable - everyone feeds off
each other," Zukoff said of rehears-
als. "It's the best group dynamic of
10 people I've ever seen."
"This is almost always the best
part of my week," said high brass
player Andy Warren, a senior in
Engineering and Music, Theatre &
Dance, of the rehearsals.
"Everyone gets along so well;
everyone's laughing and smiling all
the time," he added.
Each member feels lucky to be in
a 10-piece band, a size rare in itself,
that has such high quality and a
collaborative atmosphere.
"It's like working with some of
the best musicians on campus,"
LSA senior and backup vocalist
Hannah Winkler said.
"You feel like you should pay
to get into Groove Spoon," added
Music, Theatre & Dance junior and
backup vocalist Emily Berman.
Indeed, Groove Spoon is a
creative and social outlet for its
members, who come from various
departments at the University.
The vibe only intensifies dur-
ing the band's stage performances.
The band usually plays two to three
shows a month, including one in

the basement of Elmo's Main Street
T-Shirts. Band members surprise
the audience as well as each other
when they improvise on stage,
Winkler said.
"We're kind of like flipping out at
the cool things that each person is
doing," she said.
"I'm just constantly amazed at
the musicianship that's happen-
ing around me," added keyboardist
Michael Malis, a School of Music,
Theatre & Dance senior.
"It's way better than a 10-piece
bucket of chicken," Stanley said as
the room erupted into laughter.
And Stratton feels the audience
generally loves what Groove Spoon
does just as much as the members
do.
"This is the first band I've been
in where I'm pretty confident that
anyone who gets a glimpse is going
to dig it," he said. "That's justbased
on the (other) performers on stage,
and has nothing to do with my
drumming.
"I always feel like, 'Wow, if I
saw any of these cats (performing),
that'd be crazy.' And I've felt that
from the crowds too," he said.
For Groove Spoon, the process
of song creation and interpretation
is as collaborative as practice and
performance.
When the band reworks popular
music for a cover, one person starts
by arranging sheet music and from
there the interpretation begins.
Each section - rhythm, horns and
vocals - develops its own sound
in collaboration with the whole
group.
"There's a reference to the origi-
nal recording as well as a reference
to the fluidity of it, the fact that we
can mess with it," Malis said.
Groove Spoon's covers include
Earth, Wind & Fire's "Getaway,"
See GROOVE SPOON, Page 4B

By JENNIFER XU
Daily Arts Writer
"America's Next Top Model"
has consistently been my favorite
TV show for the past five years,
and I don't think anything can be
done at this point to change that.
To explain the boundaries of my
obsession would perhaps frighten
awaythe casual television watcher.
Not only have I seen every single
episode from each of the 14 cycles
at least six times over, I have also
seen every single episode from the
international versions: Australia,
Canada, Germany and Britain.
Quite literally, this show is
taking over my life. Once, I was
watching an episode of "Gilmore
Girls" in which Luke's daughter
watches an episode of ANTM in
the background, and immediately
I yelled out, "cycle seven, episode
three!" I don't even remember
what the "Gilmore Girls" episode
was about. Last semester, I wrote
my Great Books paper on the
show, evaluating its coherence to
Aristotle's theory of tragedy, and
I'm seriously considering writing
my senior thesis on the relation
between the show's narrative dis-
course and story. And to bring my
creepiness full circle, I printed
out a (candid, might I add) picture
from my favorite contestant's Face-
book page and taped it on my wall
so I could see it every day. Some-
one came to my room and was like,
"Are those your friends?"
oh, how I wish.
And if you don't know what
ANTM is, please, please look up
"Tyra Banks freakout" on You-
Tube and tell me that's not the pin-
nacle of quality reality television.
In each cycle, Tyra Banks and
her sycophantic entourage of
fashion police bestow upon one
leggy ingenue the hallowed title of
"America's Next Top Model." Yet
the reality of the situation is so,
so much more than that. Pointless
drama about alarm clocks and sup-
posed racism? Check. "That skank
ho poured beer on my weave?"
Check. Complete stagnation of
modeling career upon ventur-
ing out in the real world? Double
check. ANTM isn't your typical
Project Runway bullshit, where
the designers actually make some-
thing out of themselves post-show.
Cycle-one winner Adrianne Curry
married a senile Brady and landed
herself a spread in Playboy. Classy?
I think so.
I've watched enough ANTM
to come up with some pieces of
advice for anyone who thinks she

"OK, ladies! Football chest bump!"

has wh
1. Ty
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at it takes. but that was to buy ANTM under-
yra is God. This is the first wear, and they were all sold out.
emost law of the land, and Long story short, I hope this
who defies it will be cut, show never goes away. Despite its
kely immediately. The basic catapult toward increasing levels
y for winning is to worship of "dreckitude" - as Vogue editor-
ound Tyra walks on. Any at-large and newest judge Andrd
Iramatic craziness is just a Leon Talley would put it - I can-
not get enough of it. For all of its
raging drama and ridiculous judg-
ing scandals, the show can manage
to pull out some pretty amazing
veTything I models once in a while.
Elyse Sewell, who won third
snOw about place in cycle one (and who broke
n up with her boyfriend Marty two
years ago, who was a keyboardist
'om ANTMV for The Shins, after going through
-Va messy violence court charge. I
know too much about this; I'm
going to stop), has become an
4odels should wear plain international sensation traveling
ps and jeans and not much up and down Asia. Cycle eight
ou'd think after 14 cycles, winner Jaslene Gonzalez was
ants would stop coming featured in her own billboard for
nel in all sorts of outrageous Lot29 on Times Square. And the
ut just last week crazy old most recent winner, Nicole Fox,
comes into judging wear- has already been featured in ads
ilver cut-out swimsuit and a for Forever 21 and Steve Mad-
jacket. Not a good idea. den mere weeks after earning her
rying about your incred- title.
agic home life = good. Cry- Of course, who am I kidding?
nut the stresses of the show Even if that show managed to
Never do this or they'll say produce zero working models,
n't handle it. Actually, you much less supermodels, I would
what's even worse? Do. Not. remain faithfully glued to my
bout. Your. Makeover. That television screen, waiting to see
nds for immediate elimina- what antics Tyra gets herself
o matter how awesome you into next. I might flip through
be at modeling. the pages of Vogue and Harper's
on't feel compelled to actu- Bazaar and admire the beautiful,
op at Wal-Mart. Top Model waify silhouettes of Gemma Ward
ently attempts to tell me to and Sasha Pivovarova, but noth-
ut it's never very convincing ing will compare to the excite-
t, as if Tyra doesn't believe ment I experienced when, while
lf. Especially whenthe con- browsing the net, a pop-up wig
s themselves express dis- advertisement revealed, on clos-
having to shop there. There er examination, a profile shot of
at one time I did consider cycle six's Joanie Dodds, in all her
something at Wal-Mart, hair-plugged glory. Fiieeeeerce!
vi

Banff film fest brings nature to A2

By CARLY STEINBERGER
Daily Arts Writer
This year's Banff Mountain
Film Festival focuses on the
exhilarating
relationship
between humans Banff
and the out- Mountain
doors, expand-
ing beyond Film Festal
purely natural Sunday at
themes. This 7 p.m
Sunday, the fes- Michigan Theater
tival will come Tickets from $10
to the Michigan
Theater on its
annual international tour.
The Banff Mountain Film Fes-
tival is an international competi-
tion featuring innovative footage
on mountain subjects. The festi-
val, which began in 1976, kicks off
its world tour on the first weekend
IS THE TV
GUIDE
YOUR
BIBLE?
* JOIN OUR
TV STAFF.
Send an e-mail to
join.arts@umich.edu for
information on applying.

of November in Banff, Alberta,
Canada.
When the Banff festival first
came to Ann Arbor, the films were
screened in Rackham Auditorium,
but today this venue is too small to
support the crowd. The audience
the festival attracts is getting big-
ger - and not just in Ann Arbor,
but all around the country.
"We are constantly receiv-
ing applications from groups and
organizations that would like to
bring the festival to their town.
Each year, we look at our tour
schedule and see if and where we
can squeeze in a few new shows,"
wrote Meagan Stewart, the world
tour program coordinator of the
festival, in an e-mail interview.
The film festival is sponsored
by the Banff Centre, a non-profit
institute which promotes moun-
tain-related arts and culture. The

Ann Arbor event is hosted by the
campus group Outdoor Adven-
tures.
Stewart stated that the festival
"inspires creativity in adventure
as well as filmmaking," furthering
the Banff Centre's mission. "The
films show ordinary people doing
extraordinary things."
Two of the festival's most popu-
lar films will screen in Ann Arbor:
"Take a Seat" and "First Ascent:
Alone on the Wall."
"Take a Seat" is a documentary
focusing on the experience of one
Dominic Gill, who also directed.
With a tandem bike, a camera
and a trailer, Gill traveled to the
northern coast of Alaska in 2006.
He desired to bike to the south-
ernmost tip of South America

finding strangers along the way
to help him pedal the 220-pound
bicycle. The film follows his two-
year journey over two continents.
The second movie, contrib-
uted by Sender Films, "First
Ascent: Alone at the Wall" follows
24-year-old Alex Honnold as he
prepares himself for the first free
solo climb of the Regular North-
west Face route on Yosemite's
Half Dome.
Eight films in total will pre-
miere at the festival on Sunday.
"We choose a wide array of films
for the Ann Arbor spot to appeal to
a wide range of people," wrote Jea-
nette Stawski, director of outdoor
Adventures, in an e-mail interview
with the Daily. "They touch on a
See BANFF, Page 4B

S l D O K U