12 - The Michigan Daily - Monday, July 23, 2001
Eclectic music mix
makes 'Hot' album
for The Beta and
ARTS
Craig David: 'Bor
to' hit U.S. shores
Born To DoIt, Craig David; Wild-
star/Atlantic Records
By W. Jacar! Melton
Daily Arts Writer
Mark Hill, o
step garage1
Dodgers. As
this vein, the
vocals. How
of being acc
Hot Shots II, The Beta Band;
Astralwerks
By Jeremy Peters
For the Daily
Described as a continuation of "the
band's never-ending exploration into
all things rock, electronic, hip-hop,
funk - basically every non-polka
variety of music," on The Beta
Band's website, Hot Shots II is more
than just a simple exploratory trip.
Instead the album delves deeper, into
the inner psyche of the band and
their amalgam of creative influences.
In a selection of tunes transfused
with a trip-hop beat, illogical yet
stunning combinations of vocalist
Stephen Mason's lines and other
instruments sampled or not, the
album is definitely not for those who
crave a daily dose of major-label
hook-laden glittery pop.
In choosing to step away from
summer tour-mates Radiohead, and
the current rash of MTV sensibility,
Hot Shots II follows in the same
irreverent direction as their past two
albums, 1998's The Three EPs, and
their lesser quality first major label
release, The Beta Band. Hot Shots II,
as the band's sophomore major label
release, brings the band back online
with the level of musicality shown in
their first release.
Though the album as a whole see what I m
flows well, certain tracks prove to be To top it
standouts. bonus track
For example, placed squarely in contains a fr
the middle of the album, "Dragon" is samples of 3
a pithy and involved song, a tightly a curiously c
woven piece of the puzzle that is the rap. However
album as a whole. ly connotatet
On an album with languid airy Hot Shots II
spaces, such as "Human Being," opposite.
"Gone" and "Life," involved and Though n
complicated tracks, plus sections of album is a str
songs such as "Dragon," "Quiet" and the mainly S
"Squares," tend to be the glue that detraction to
makes what is already a strong album seems there i
even stronger. or group of
"Eclipse," as the final track on the final inch ov
album, provides a fittingly odd end- all in the pl
ing to an odd album by an odd band. sophisticatio
The main lyrics of the song highlight laid down on
this, and the band's taste for the
absurd as well. Listen to it, and you'll Grade: A-
ean.
off, wha
called"
'ee-flowin
Dog Nig
lever fre
, where t
s strange
proves to
ot for th
roke of n
Scottish I
the sele
s no over
tracks to
er the ed
an, a part
on that T
the disc.
Barely into his 20s, Craig David has ferentiates it
already made waves on the music scene. because its
The Southampton, England native female relati
Courtesy of Astraiwerks became the youngest British male to the relations
score a #1 single on the U.K. charts. their audienc
From there, his album Born To Do It has teners not fat
at follows is a sold four million copies worldwide earn- music scene,
"Won," which ing him gold, platinum or multi-platinum to a genre t
ng amalgam of status in 20 countries. Now David is spread attent
tht's "One" and looking to add another country to that Atlantic.
estyle-sounding total with Born To Do It's U.S. release. Besides "I
he odd general- Even though David made an appear- and "Rewind
and unlikable, ance on GURU's third installment in the sess any trac
be exactly the Jazzmatazz series, most U.S. listeners are guishable fro
probably more familiar with his heavily to say they're
re masses, the played "Fill Me In." The song has made a little tedion
ear genius from him an international star and makes two are different
band. The only appearances on the 14-track album. The pop music to
ction is that it first version combines elements of two- utilized at tim
whelming track step garage music with David's unique ("Booty Man
push you the vocal delivery. He switches the speed of whether or n
ge. Perhaps it's his cadence with ease, adding some stac- platinum stat
t of the subtle cato and legato notes where appropriate. short ina satt
he Beta Band Ifa comparison were made, the closest rent standard
match would be with Bone Thugs-N- sider to take t
Harmony.
"Rewind" features production from Grade: B
ne-half of the Britis
production team the
with most dance m
beat takes preceden
ever, David does a gc
ompaniment. This t4
self from the other t
content isn't about
ons. Rather it mainly
.hip between club D
e. Also, at least for t
miliar with the U.K.'s
it serves as an intros
hat hasn't received
ion on the other side
Fill Me In" (parts 1
,' Born To DoIt do4
Aks that are greatly
m others on the albu
bad songs, but they i
us. David's voice an
from anything else fc
day but they may be
ses when his lyrics ar
"). The verdict is still
tot David can achieN
us, but chances are 1
srated market where,
s, he is too much of
he country by storm.
Be a part of the
Seeking:
Student groups to perform at
M EJE MAINESS during
Welcome to Michigan 2001.
(6000 students attended the event in 2000!)
When:
Friday, August 31, 10pm-2am
(Groups will get a 15-20 min. slot)
For more information or to sign up,
e-mail pvachon@umich.edu
by Friday, August 10.
PERFORMANCE I4p0 TUNITV!
Quirky dramedy spices up HB4
By Seth Klempner
Daily Arts Writer
For most television networks, it is
hard to stay on the cutting edge of trends
and give viewers what they want. Lucki-
ly for HBO, they are not a normal televi-
sion network, as stated so clearly in their
motto: "It's not TV It's HBO."
With their new
hit series "Six Feet
Under' HBO has
Six Feet yet again struck
Under the success that
first begat "The
HBO Sopranos" and
Sundays at 9:30 p.m. "Sex in the City."
*" Written by
Academy Award
winning writer
Alan Ball, whose
only produced
screenplay was the
critically acclaimed "American Beauty,
"Six Feet Under" takes a hard-edged
look at a dysfunctional family in the Los
Angeles undertaking business.
Much like "Beauty," Ball step by step
strips away the facade of a seemingly
normal family with every event, reveal-
ing traits and characteristics that allow
the Fisher family to function on a dys-
functional level.
Ball goes inside the personas of the
family members and carefully builds
relationships based on the personalities
of each character, making every con-
nection unique. He also makes unex-
pected shifts in character actions which
at first appear to be illogical behavior
for them, but seem well-placed in hind-
sight.
A death serves as the introduction
into every episode. These death scenes
provide a contrast from the normal ebb
and flow of the show and the family's
ordeals. In each death scene, the audi-
ence is unfamiliar with the character
and is not introduced until the next
scene, which is often a meeting between
the deceased's family and the Fisher
brothers, David and Nate.
The series opens with the f
patriarch Nathaniel Fisher, p
Richard Jenkins, worn down
driving his new hearse on Chri
Eve when he is hit by abus, killin
instantly. In his will he leaves the
ly's mortician business to his two
David (Michael Hall) is the
experienced brother in the bus
handling the financial aspects
funeral home. He finds himself
gling to come to terms with his
sexuality and where he fits intd
community.
His brother Nate (Peter Kr
"SportsNight") is only brought b
Los Angeles after the death
father. He struggles to get into the
ily business while attempting to
stand the behavior of the father he
really knew.
Add a mother, Frances Conroy
is straight out of the fifties in bot
classic denial and repression Qf
lion, and a jovial delinquet
played by Lauren Ambrose ("4
Hardly Wait").
The cast meshes well together,
ing an atmosphere of life in the mi
unconventional deaths. Like "Am
Beauty" which provided a glimps
a "typical" American family, "Sia
Under" fulfills any voyeuristic fan
about the life of a troubled family.
"Six Feet Under" is among
ics' new "Must See TV" adding 1
the HBO fire, with a prime spot
"Sex in the City." Proving that the:f
man series is one to watch, HB(
greenlighted a second season
before the premiere episode aired.