Arts The Michigan Daily Tuesday, July 21, 1981 Page 9 Yoko Ono Yoko Ono-'Season of Glass' (Gef- fen)-What can you say about a record like this? You can't exactly put it down for being melancholy. It's really much less of a musical record than it is a memorial statement; besides the cover (which bears the blood-smeared glasses of her late husband), almost every song refers to John Lennon at least indirectly. One thing you can say is that it's all very sad. The first side is pretty much straightforward singer-songwriter stuff, almost folksy at times. To my mind, though, the second side-with its oddly disjointed-funk sound and strange vocal quirks-is much more effective. It is here that Yoko Ono seems to con- nect much more genuinely with some real anger, fear, sorrow, and confusion. BUT I GUESS the whole thing is ef- fective in so far as it will keep you depressed about John Lennon's death as long as it is playing. With lyrics like "Let me take my pants off.. . No, no, no, Don't do it, Ican't do it. I'm seeing broken glass when we do it. " it can hardly be anything but jarring. All I can say is that I'm glad Yoko is working this through now rather than going into seclusion for years and then going through this. We're at a point where we can still identify with her sorrow, where her pain is still frighteningly real in our minds. But I will continue to hope that someday she is able to return to the inspired dance frenzy of "Kiss Kiss Kiss" and "Walking on Thin Ice." -Mark Dighton Kraftwerk Kraftwerk-Computer World' (War- ner Brothers)-Okay, I might as well admit right up front that I'm at least a bit pissed at these guys. I mean, how many times are they going to keep doing this record over again?! This release seems almost identical in con- tent, tone, and instrumentation to its recent predecessors-The Man- machine, and Trans-Europe Express. Sure, T-E Express was a lyrics are still one step above moronic (and that's being kind) and the music is still almost ludicrously simple. (At least, as simple as music this technically complex can conceivably be.) But my advice to you is to just have fun with it . . . I hope that Kraftwerk won't find that sentiment contemptible. I have a feeling that behind those cold, automated facades there lies a warm Holly and Italians fill2 z Holly and the Italians-'The Right to be Italian' (Virgin-Epic)-Good taste can really do you in sometimes. Holly and the Italians are just that close to making a tribute to the American lifestyle as outrageously to the point as Joan Jett's Bad Reputation, but they, don't quite make it. They've got loads of cute lines and punky hooks, but it all seems confused by their desire to be a little too polished in a mainstream sort of way. The sound of Right to be Italian is just tooooo serious and reserved for the songs. As a result of that post-punk produc- tion dilemma, The Italians come off sounding like Pat Benatar as often as Teardrop Explodes, neither of which is appropriate to their style. At their best, they echo Generation X, but they still can't seem to rid themselves of those nasty heavy metal undercurrents. The only unadulterated material on this record is some real tasty updated girl group paeans like "Just for Tonight," but these are sadly few and far bet- ween. 'JUST YOUNG' is a good example of just how torturously conflicted this album can be. It starts off as a relatively funky dance cut with a rhythm that hooks into you im- mediately. The vocals enter, mildly (but not annoyingly) referring to Chrissie Hynde of the Pretenders. But by the time you reach the chorus only moments later, the whole thing's degenerated into heavy-metal Pat- Benatar city. There are just enough good moments along the way to keep you from giving up hope, but not enough to make you want to go through this travailing experience again soon. If Holy and her Italians had gone fur- ther in either direction, this could have been a much better album. It could have been a very respectable album of mainstream hook-laden rock and roll . . . or it could have tossed caution and decorum to the wind and done a completely glorious send- up/celebration of what it means to be American. It's really sad that we'll probably have to wait for Joan to come along and do justice to lines like "I wanna walk down my old street, I wanna go to 7-11, a cola slurpee would taste real neat." Holly Vincent may wear a leather jacket, but she better not let Joan Jett catch her acting tough. Round Joan's neighborhood they use lightweights like Holly to mop up the table after break- fast. -Mark Dighton ground-breaking effort, but now Kraf- twerk seem to be hanging around to make sure that all that ground they broke is smashed into little bits. All of the artists that were influenced by that album have long since expanded on its style-David Bowie, Giorgio Moroder, the Silicon Teens, Yellow Magic Or- chestra-everyone but Kraftwerk. It seems to have become a formula for them. AND AS FAR as that goes, it's not a bad formula. I guess no philosophical qualms could keep this from being an infectiously enjoyable record. They're still obsessed with wimpy, cerebral electronics that manage to be dan- ceable without stooping to anything as base and obvious as being "funky." (Witness their new hit disco single off this disc, "Pocket Calculator.") Their Join Ne BaiQ 5 News Staff. diode somewhere that loves to see people enjoy these silly techno-pop curios. Maybe we'll get some clues to their reactions to our unnecessarily emotional enjoyment of their music when they appear at Nitro's (in Detroit) this Saturday. -Mark Dighton ANN ARBOR GOLD AND SILVER EXCHANGE 216 S. Fourth Ave. - 996-9059 WANTED F ID PLATIUM 4° 0POCKET Any Item Marked 10 kt - 14 kt - 18 kt WATCES DENTAL GOLD FOREIGN GOLD GOLD METALS CLASS RINGS WEDDING BANDS EYEGLASS FRAMES GOLD COINS GOLD PINS GOLD CUFF LINKS BROKEN JEWELRY DIAMONDS GOLD WATCHES N* SILVER We purchase any cut, any shape, GOLD CHAINS Coins "Sterling *Flatware any color stone. Tea Sets " Jewelry " Industrial We pay by weight Hours: Mon. thru Sat. 9:00 AM - 5:00 PM State certified scales .