,iu - ine micnigan Ianly - Wednesday, June 1, 1994

STONES
Continued from page 9
comes to a head, the movie slows.
But forget the plot. Look at the
details. With dinosaurs and other
modern stone-age creatures created
by a team-up between Jim Henson's
Creature Shop and Industrial Light
and Magic, the visuals are awe-in-
spiring, even to hardened veterans of
"Jurassic Park" and "T2." By far, the
most amazing creature is Dino, the
Flintstone's dino-mutt who is played
by a computer.
b"he effects, though, are so incred-
ible that when more down-to-earth
methods are used, they seem dull.
While Harvey Korman (formerly The
Great Gazoo in the cartoon) is won-
derful as Fred's office dicta-bird, the
clanky, robotic movements scream
out that it is a fake bird.
The potential is there. There most
assuredly will be a sequel, and one
can hope that they get things just right
the next time. But then again, with all
the nostalgia pumped into the first
film, there may not be any left for the
next. The filmitselfis fine. But maybe
it should remain an only child.
THE FLINTSTONES is playing at
Briarwood and Showcase.

RECORD

Material Issue
Freak City Sountrack
Mercury
Finally, after years of contaminat-
ing the airwaves with annoying but
catchy singles (with the exception of
"Valerie Loves Me"), Material Issue
has delivered the sleeper hit of the
summerwith"FreakCitySoundtrack."
Gonearethe whiny vocalsand dippy
songs of their previous efforts, which
are replaced with more power pop
than you can shake a stick at. Material
Issue has revealed itself to be the heir
to the legacy of the Byrds, Sweet, and
Badfinger with songs like "Kim the
Waitress," "Funny Feeling" and
"She's Goin' ThruMy Head." A slick,
poppy album in the vein of Redd
Kross' work, "FreakCity Soundtrack"
is summer fun with staying power.
-HeatherPhares
Etta James
mystery lady Songs of Billie
Holiday
Private Music
Etta James' raspy, bluesy voice at-
tempts to do the album she's been

wanting to make for 30 years. The
danger here, as with all albums that
attempt to capture something from a
lost era, is that the era bygone will be
disrespectfully trampled by the new
version. Of course, anyone who at-
tempts a project dedicated to one per-
son usually understands that duplica-
tion of the past is not only impossible
but unwanted; instead the music is
meant asa tribute in the context of the
new artist's interpretation. Etta James
is anything but a new artist, but she
has never before attempted an album
so subdued. Does it work? The musi-
cians are quality, the production and
mixing exceptional -it comes down
to aquestion ofhow the listener wants
their jazz sung. If one thinks a little
blues, a little rasp, a voice that has
been through the musical wringer, is
just what old jazz tunes need, then
look no further. If, on the other hand,
experience and maturity isn't impor-
tant, but an untattered, smooth as silk
voice is - keep on searching.
-DustinE. Howes

"Crooklyn" through the movie's
soundtrack. All its tracks but one were
produced prior to 1975, so you are
guaranteed a CD jam-packed with
music from the "old school."
Some of these songs are as famil-
iar to us as our names. Titles like
"ABC," performed by the Jackson 5,
and "Pusher Man," performed by
Curtis Mayfield, and perhaps most
familiar as the theme song of the hit
movie "Superfly," will surely ring a
bell. "Everyday People," performed
by Sly and the Family Stone, and
"Pass the Peas," performed by The
JB's, both found on this CD, have
been used recently in contemporary
remixes. The former was remade by
Arrested Development, and the re-
frain from the latter was used by Tony
Toni Tone.
"Ooh Child," performed by The
Five Stairsteps, "America's first fam-
ily of soul," is a mixture of '60s and
'70s sound; this song can also be
found on the "Boyz in the Hood"
soundtrack.
The only newly produced song on
the "Crooklyn" soundtrack is
"Crooklyn," performed by The
Crooklyn Dodgers and featuring Spe-
cial Ed, Buckshot and Masta Ace.
If you buy this CD, you will find
yourself enraptured in the thrill of the
'70s for hours on end. Get it; you
deserve the best.


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Various Artists "'-V'-'
-EugeneBowen
Crooklyn(Soundtrack) Various Artists
MCA Records
In case ya didn't get enough of The Secret Life Of Trance
SpikeLee'sjointwhen youwenttosee PlanetEarthRecordings
the movie, you can relive the excite- Supposedly, trancemusic is adivi-
ment of the '70s as exemplified in sion of dance music that uses ambient
soundscapes toa degree while combin-
ing them with more familiar dance
music elements in an effort to make
them a bit more, well, danceable. As
with most compilations, some artists
on this record seem to be on to some-
thing worth paying attention to, while
others just seem to be there to add a
degree of contrast to the collection,
whether the music fits in or not.
Fortunately, there are some ter-
MICHIGAN
Of Take a Reality Break.
Visit Sanctuary, a
medieval town where
THE brave knights and
power
sorcerors
WEEK~
Iy battle cruel
tyrants and evil
necromancers and YOU
can be any of the above.
BWe all that You Can't Be"

ritic moments on this album that wor
well both on the dance floor and in t
living room. The opening three tracks,
by Influx, Sequential and RDI, mesh
hypnotic beats and pulsating se-
quences to create a highly enjoyable
groove. Others, such as The Rising
High Collective and OBX unfortu-
nately choose to ruin perfectly decent
grooves with asinine singing andsub-
standard rapping.
If you've got a handle on thesel
these new divisions of dance music,
you already know whether Trance is
your thing or not. If not, this compila-
tion, while not perfect, is a good place
to help you figure it all out.
-Andy Dolan
2 Nazty
IndecentExposure
Attitude Records
2 Nazty's in the house, and if t
group's members can keep producing
CDs like "Indecent Exposure," they
are going to be around for a while.
Membersofthis four-manrapgroup
include Brother Marquis (formerly of
2Live Crew)and DJToomp (formerly
ofPoison Clan).These brothas are bad
as all hell, and they have collaborated
in the making of a collection of cuts
worthy of their name. You will easi
recognize the so-corny-its-good party
sounds of 2 Live Crew mixed in with
PoisonClan-influencedhardcorebeats
to produce an array of dance music.
With a former member of 2 Live
Crew working on this CD, you know
you'll be hearing about gettin' that
"sex on." Songs like "Be My Bxtch,"
"Puxxy Whipped,"and"Mr.BigDxxk
do just that.
DJ Toomp shouts out to the city
Atlanta in "Somebody Say Ho" with
some fast, crazy fresh beats, contrast-
inggreatlytothe almostmellow-sound-
ingbackgroundsoundsof"ShouOut."
The CD is bad, but you gotsataohear
it ta believe it.
-EugeneBowen
Crowded House
TogetherAlone
CapitolRecords
On their latest release, Crowded
House adds a dash of Eastern experi-
mentalism to their usual well-made
Anglo-pop. The result is a catchy and
spiritual listen that runs the gamut of
emotions, from the hyperkinetic
"Locked Out" to the hushed "Distant
Sun."Otherinteresting tracks include
"Black and White Boy" and "In My
Command." That the album was pro-
duced by Youth of the Orb and in-
cludes the Te Waka Huia Cultura
Group Choir on many of the track
adds to the lush exoticism on "To-
getherAlone"andmakesitachalleng-
ing yetlistenable album.
-HeatherPhares