Wd nesday, May 19, 1993 - The Michigan Daly Summer Weeky -9 INXS brings down the house By SCOTT STERLING AsINXSended theirblistering sold- out show at Saint Andrew's Hall with "Don't Change,"it served as an appro- priate theme song for this seminalirock and roll tribe. In the face of so many new-fangled, Lollapalooza-generated INXS . S. Andrew'sHall- May 13, 1993 "alternative" music trends, INXS has steadfastly stuck to its unique con- glomeration of rock, funk and soul.No flannel shirts, long johns or trendy dropped-D tunings a la Seattle have found their way into INXS' music. This was more than evident last Thurs- daynight,whenAustralia'smostfamed glamour boys made monkeys of most of their contemporaries on the Detroit stop of its "Get Out Of The House" club tour. Opening with a huge, symphonic version of "Communication" (from their obscenely underrated latest re- lease, "Welcome To Wherever You Are"), the enigmaticrockgodMichael Hutchence (all hair, cigarettes and attitude) had the crowd eating (and at some points, literally drinking) out of the palm of his hand. Notorious for their legendary live shows,INXS definitely livedup tothe hype, rolling out hit after hit after hit. Not many acts on the road can boast suchaprolific catalogueofgreatsongs - the crowd sang along to album tracks like "Mystify" as lustily as smash hit singles like "Need You Tonight" or "Suicide Blonde" (at which point I think we all collectively hit nirvana). The set relied heavily on songs from their last two albums, with a healthy sampling of tunes from their upcoming record, tentatively set for a fallrelease.Thenewsongsweresparse with ahard funk edge (reminiscent of their genre-busting album "The Swing"), which isn't too hard to do with a crack rhythm section that fea- turesbassistGarryGary Beersandthe amazing Jon Farriss on drums. Halfway through the show, the band really hit their stride, following an anthemic rendition of "What You Need" with a massive "New Sensa- tion"that was so hot it blew up the PA. Other than this minor setback, the night was frankly nothing less than perfect. Hutchence skillfully worked the frantic and mosh-crazy crowd, shoo- ing away bouncers and welcoming the more fervent fans up on stage to shake some booty or sneak a kiss (most notably the model blonde that Mike allowed to boogie alittle longer than the rest). A couple of lucky dis- ciples down front even got to share a glass of Cabernet Sauvignon with Monsieur Hutchence. Theyappeasedusold-timefansby pulling out some golden nuggets like "I Send A Message" and even "Just Keep Walking" from their eponymously-titled 1980 (has it re- ally been that long?) debut. Yeah, they're coming back in the fall on an arena tour, but this once-in- a-lifetime gig was simply not to be missed. If you did, all I can say is sorry. Best show of the summer so far. INXS climbs its way back to the top with its club tour. s 13th GEN: Abort, Retry, Ignore, Fail? by Neil Howe and Bill Strauss Random House By OLIVER GIANCOLA Areyoutiredofhearingolderadults bash our "Baby Buster" generation? Well Neil Howe and Bill Strauss are two hip Baby Boomers who give our generation a much-neededreexamina- tion. In "13th GEN: Abort, Retry, Ig- nore, Fail?" Howe and Strauss offer a fair and honest look at the 13th genera- tionof Americans, the80millionpeople born from 1961-1981 who comprise thelargest,mostdiverseandmostcriti- cized generation alive today. If you are between 32 and 12 years old but are skeptical about belonging toa generation (especially one defined by two Boomers), then you are very much a "13er." As Ian Williams, a20- somethinghackerwho"crashed"Howe and Strauss' computer conference, explains in the book: "If there's a gen- eralization you can make about all of us, it's that we all hate generaliza- tions.especially [sic] the ones that are frequently true." Indeed, we are cyni- cal individualists, but it is this very attitude which holds us together asa generation. Thirteeners certainly have plenty of reasons to be cynical. Howe and Strauss point out that, "Thirteeners started out as ... the least wanted of twentieth-century American baby generations." In an age of anti-child movies like "The Exorcist" and "The Omen," the '70s marked a shift to- ward a parenting philosophy that placed parents' needs over their children's. Parentsembarkedon voy- agesofself-discoverytthatoftenended in divorce and forced their kids to learn about reality on their own. Our schools adopted a similar at- titude.Howe andStraussexplainthat, "when coming-of-age Boomers set out to 'liberate' America from vari- ous G.I. Generation institutions, schools were among the first and big- gest targets." The result, "open educa- tion,"was"arationale for aleave-'em- alone nurture, for constructive neglect by the adults important to a child's life." Emphasizing a student's "per- sonal growth" over textbook knowl- edge, schools fostered lax learning en- vironments that failed to adequately prepare students in the traditional sub- jects. We are "highly street-smart and tech-smart" only because of our self- education outside the classroom. These experiences at home and at school helped shape our world view. witty comments, RJ. Matson's wry Howe and Strauss assert that we are a political cartoons, and informative geertin 1pr c oltia -quse aostnaesusue sug"a r r generation of pragmatic political "re-inre."Titeer oe o actionaries." Thirteners voted for Reagan in response to the '70s and for Clinton in response to the '80s. And in 1992, 3ers voted for Ross Perot (the ultimate "can-do" pragmatist) more than any other generational group. Politically, we are a generation con- cerned with the bottom line: "If you talk the big talk, you'd better deliver." Howe and Strauss bolster their per- ceptive analyses with Ian Williams' quotes and statistics in the margins. While these additions are just as inter- esting and entertaining as the text it- self, they can become distracting - making this 200-page book seem longer. Furthermore, the authors over- look 13ers' attitudes toward religion. In spite of these minor faults, "13th GEN" is worth reading. Howe and Strauss provide an insight into our generation that everyone-especially 3ers -should know and understand. is now forming a Focus Group to provide a channel for student input. kQARI)LN Restaurant Szechuan, Hunan, & Peking Cuisine 15% OFF Dinner and Carry-Out Menu OFFER EXPIRES MAY 31, 1993 Reservations 971-0970 3035 Washtenaw, Ann Arbor Open Mon-Thur. 11:30-10, Fr. 11:30-11. ....." Sat. Noon-11, Sun. Noon-10 Free Parking! V What information would you like included in this year's Student Directory? V Is the Directory easy to read? - V Offer any suggestions to make a better Directory. Call 764055 7 for information.