The Michigan Daily - michigandaily.com

Thursday, October 30, 2014 -- 3B

The Michigan Daily - michigandailycom Thursday, October 30,2014 - 3B

Student musicians
find venue at co-op

LITERARY COLUMN
Can I write an
entire novel in
a month?

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.ocalbandsto
participate in
ther Halloween'
MRUTHA SIVAKUMAR
Daily Arts Writer
ed-in music may be the
obvious way to turn up a
party in Ann Arbor's col-
cene, but Luther Buchele
rative House does it dif-
ly. On Friday, the co-op
ehash its annual Luther
ween, bringing seven
to play on its stages -
g a more organic touch to
stivities that surround the

NICHOLAS WILLIAMS/Daily
Luther Buchele Cooperative House hosts an annual Halloween music party.

All Saints' Day. lead vocalist.
rting at 10 p.m., two rooms After the band's Oct. 10
co-op's house will simul- show at The Blind Pig, Rosette
usly host a series of bands approached Koiland asked him to
the Ypsilanti, Kalamazoo play at Luther Halloween.
nn Arbor areas. As the Taking the Luther stage at
progresses, Luther Hal- 12:20 a.m., Caves will play sev-
nwill showcase the eclec- eral new songs currently being
al music scene. recorded for their upcoming
the heavier side, there's record. Fans can also expect to
Party, a technically driv- hear a "secret cover" played dur-
gressive metal that shreds ing the night, Koi teased.
most local bands; Dirty "I've been to three Luther Hal-
e, a reggae and rock outfit loweens; I just always remember
raddles the fence between having areally, really great time,"
suited for a coffee table Koi said as she recalled watching
:t and a punk-rock audi- older students in the jazz depart-
and Caves, a sonic concoc- ment performing live at last
f experimental rock and year's event. "Now we're playing
oaded with strong instru- there, which is really cool for me
Is. on a personal level."
on the other end of the "We're starting to develop bit
um, The Euphorics fea- more of an identity as a band,"
feel-good, danceable set she added. "The more you play,
d Stormy Chromer, which the more you get out there, the
exceptional live instru- more feedback you're going to
1 clarity. get. The feedback is positive
en it comes to gritty local feedback."
there's no deficit. After The Euphorics, another young
Radio will bring a funk- powerhouse in Ann Arbor's
eggae-driven alternative music scene, is no stranger to
and Silent Affair will sup- large crowds and bright lights.
wide variety of funk-rock Having performed at a show
nce. in Luther earlier this year and
ineering senior and music another at Truth House, the
zer for Luther Halloween largest co-op in Ann Arbor, the
Rosette called the annual band is ready to expand its set
the "biggest Halloween of originals and covers for the
in Ann Arbor." He added co-op's stage the second time
his year's festivities will around.
more on live music than "We've been taking our
us years. originals on test runs, and
pect a lot of people, we've really been excited with
se it's the biggest party for the outcomes," said Music,
ween for anywhere in Ann Theatre & Dance sophomore
and probably anywhere Erez Levin, drummer for The
e county," Rosette said. Euphorics. "The co-op circuit
tve doing this and we love is a great atmosphere because
m people come and enjoy everyone is there to party but
at our house. Ann Arbor everyone wants to see a live
as (much) part of this as band."
. The city and the people In the week leading up to the
d here are very conducive show, The Euphorics arranged
it we do." a piece to "I Want You (She's
So Heavy)," a Beatles track
A'rite of passage' from Abbey Road. Calling it
the band's "Halloween rocker,"
r the last year, Caves guitarist Dan Sagher said per-
own to become a house- forming covers allows the band
same to many local music to bring back some of its high
By crafting a sophisticated school musical influences to fit
of rock, they rose quickly alongside its originals.
;h the rungs of the Ann The Euphorics will take the
music scene. stage at 1:30 a.m. and close out
're starting to develop the night.
e bit more identity as a "Worst case scenario, we'll
said Music, Theatre & just write a song on the spot,"
senior Alex Koi, Caves' vocalist and guitarist Nadim

Azzam said, laughing. Taking
advantage of the variety of stu-
dents and music fans that will be
at Luther, Azzam said the band
would be ready to play as many
of its tracks as would fit in the
night.
"(Luther is) one of the few
places where you can get kids
to come out and actually give a
shit," he added. "Every band you
meet in Ann Arbor says 'Hey, I
remember playing at Luther,' and
it feels like a rite of passage."
Beyond the co-op,
to Ann Arbor
Luther Co-op's withstanding
focus on live music over the years
is indisputable. Known as the
location of poet and activist John
Sinclair's freedom rally - whose
efforts led to the redefining of
marijuana laws in Ann Arbor
40 years ago to allow the annual
Hash Bash - the Luther House
has since been a conglomeration
of artists, musicians and writers,
and is often recognized for their
annual Halloween parties.
Acting as a leaping point for
local bands to play at larger ven-
ues like The Blind Pig, Luther has
served as an anchor to musicians
across all genres. Calling himself
the "bearer of the torch for this
generation" of Luther music,
Rosette said the co-op was happy
to be a part of the growing dia-
logue about local music.
"Luther iswelcoming, it's open
and it's a place where people
know that they will have a good
time and they will be exposed to
real music made by real people
who are just doing it for the love
of making music," Rosette said.
"That's one big love pot."
By coexisting in the same
music environment as newer
bands such as San Cristobal,
Caves and Yada Yada, Azzam
said it felt as if they were "rejuve-
nating the music scene" together
and gaining recognition as local
artists.
"It feels like one of the things
about being a musician in Ann
Arbor that I've heard a lot of
people talking about is that a
few years ago - through artists
like Theo Katzman and My Dear
Disco - it was a unified scene
and everything was really com-
ingtogether. I never really expe-
rienced that, but it's all sort of
coming back."

By GRACE PROSNIEWSKI
Daily Literary Columnist
A s Halloween
approaches, I've been
wracking my brain
to find a suitably spookyctopic
to write on this week. As I've
already written about my favorite
horror stories, I was left to won-
der what else could strike fear
into your very hearts, gentle
readers.
The release of midterm
grades? Perhaps. Scheduling
classes for next semester?
Undoubtedly. The remainder
of this football season? Noth-
ing quite so terrifying.
Well how about that this
Saturday marks the begin-
ning of National Novel Writ-
ing Month, better known as
NaNoWriMo? Cue the flicker-
ing lights and jarring minor
chords.
For those of you who don't
know, NaNoWriMo is an
annual online creative writ-
ing project that challenges
participants to write 50,000
words of an original novel
from Nov. 1 to Nov. 30. Using
the NaNoWriMo site, you can
track your progress, connect
with fellow writers and access
resources for when you're feel-
ing stuck.
Many may scoff at the idea of
writing a quality novel within
a month, but before you start
throwing your vintage type-
writers at me, hear me out.
The point of NaNoWriMo isn't
for writers to churn out per-
fectly crafted novels. Instead,
it provides budding novelists
with a semi-structured plan to
produce a first draft, which can.
then be edited after the month
is over.
Given all this, you may won-
der why I think of NaNoWriMo
as a potentially scary subject.
If your experiences with it are
anything like my own, it's not
hard to guess. I tend to follow a
very set pattern in which I first
feel totally up for NaNoWriMo,
I then proceed to forget about
it until a week into November,
after which I furiously scribble
out a page to somewhat catch
up, then never return to it but
swear I'll do better next year.
However, no excuses this
year, because I am now publicly
accountable to you, dear read-
ers. To better prepare myself
and any others who may be

participating, I've compiled
a few tips on writing from
famous authors that I person-
ally think are quite useful.
"Murder your darlings."
- Arthur Quiller-Couch
Variations of this quote have
been attributed to numerous
writers across time, includ-
ing Allen Ginsberg, William
Faulkner, Stephen King and
of course, who else, but Oscar
Wilde. So why have so many
writers espoused this senti-
ment? Put simply, it's damn
good advice. First and fore-
most, it refers to the need to
eliminate characters, dialogue
and passages that you as the
author may love but that don't
advance the story for the read-
er. I also like to think of it as
differentiating between writ-
ing and wish fulfillment. No
one wants to read about happy
things happening to perfect
people because there's no
story there. Conflict is essen-
tial for not only an interesting,
plot but also for meaningful
character development. You
don't have to kill off your
favorite character or leave
them miserable, but stay vigi-
lant against Mary Sues and
Marty Stus.
"No tears in the writer,
no tears in the reader. No
surprise in the writer, no
surprise in the reader."
- Robert Frost
Respect your audience. If
a passage isn't emotionally
poignant or thrilling for you
as the writer, don't assume it
will be different for the read-
er. If you think something is
important but you don't know
how to frame it interestingly,
keep experimenting. Read-
ers will know if you're just
phoning in a scene. And don't
underestimate your audi-
ence either. Literary devices,
especially symbols and fore-
shadowing, don't need to be
shoved in the reader's face.
Keep it suibtle, but purposeful.
"Don't tell me the moon is
shining; show me the glint
of light on broken glass."
- Anton Chekhov
Let's be real. This sentence
is more poetic and expressive

than anything I have or will
ever write. But I'm not even
discouraged, because it's fan-
tastic advice. Writers often
talk about the concept of
showing, not telling, meaning
that rote exposition and sum-
marization can only take you so
far. Immersing a reader com-
pletely in your story requires
giving them relevant, but also
descriptive information for
them to paint their own version
of your world. This is where
sensory details and subtle
character actions allow you to
gently guide a reader through
your story rather than drag
them through it.
"The worst enemy to
creativity is self-doubt."
- Sylvia Plath
A little self-doubt is not only
normal, but also a veritable
good thing. No one wants you
walking around like the Kanye
of literature. However, when
self-doubt is so strong that it
keeps you from creating out
of fear of failing, it's time to
reevaluate. NaNoWriMo's
time constraint actually works
beneficially here, as a writer
doesn't have time to fuss over
the perfection of every word.
Remember, you can only edit
if you have something written
down.
"Read, read, read. Read
everything - trash, classics,
good and bad, and see
how they do it."
- William Faulkner
I've never heard of a writer
who was-not also a vora-
cious reader. The surest way
to improve your writing,
besides regular writing, is
reading. It's in the works of
others where we establish
who we are as writers, when
we decide what works for us,
what moves us and equally
important, what doesn't. Even
if you're not interested in
writing a novel this Novem-
ber, at least read one. It may
be just as valuable.
So put on a pot of coffee,
disable your WiFi and get
cracking on that next great
American novel.
Prosniewski is quoting a bunch of
depressive alcoholics. To help her
mix it up, e-mail gpros@umich.edu.

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SINGLE REVIEW

AYoung Money dream team
has come together for Nicki
Minaj's new track, "Only." If
only Minaj, Lil
Wayne, Drake
and Chris
Brown hadn't Only
made itso
damnuncom- Nicki Minaj
fortable. feat. Drake,
"I never Chris Brown
fucked & Lil Wayne
Wayne, I Young Money
never fucked
Drake," Minaj
spits at the song's opening. Fast
forward to Drake's verse: "I
never fucked Nicki cause she
got a man /But when that's
over then I'm first in line." Fast
forward again to Wayne's verse:
"I never fucked Nicki and that's
fucked up." I'msorry, what?
Young Money is on a down-
ward spiral. Lil Wayne's new
album is M.LA, Drake's new sin-
gle is a flop and Minaj's album
has been pushed back (again) to

Dec.15.
Incorporating four power-
house rappers/Young Money
vets on a Dr. Luke-produced
track should've been gold. Sadly,
this is far from the case. The
beat borders on elevator music:
What the hell, Dr. Luke? With
the exception ofNicki'sopener,
the verses are increasingly
uncomfortable. The highlight
of the track is Brown's hook,
mainly because it is completely
detached from the content ofthe
verses. Even then, who really

YOUNG MONE Y
arr
cares about Chris Brownanya y jus
more? be
Which Young Money genius
said, "OK lets write a song about Spi
how Nicki hasn't screwed her ing
coworkers, buthowthey desper- ing
ately wantto screw her"? pa:
It is high time Young Money fro
steps up its game. If the artists sr
continue to release disap- in,
pointments like this one sta
(or just never release any sta
albums at all), soon they will itg
be Young Bankruptcy.
-CHRISTIANKENNEDY