b ARTS- Silver Mt. Zion defy style on 'Hrses By Chris Gaerig Daily Arts Writer MUSIC REVIEW As the side project for Efrim Menuck - the frontman and musical mastermind behind Canadian post-rockers Godspeed You Black Emper- or! (GYBE!) - A Silver Mt. Zion A Silver is likely to see its Mt. Zion share of experi- Orchestra mental techniques. and the Utilizing the epic, Tra-La-La instrumental style Band of GYBE!, their Horses In the Sky work features unorthodox struc- Canstetatiss tures to convey a plethora of emotions and feelings. The group's name changes radically on each album, and on their latest release, Horses In the Sky, A Silver Mt. Zion distinguish themselves from Menuck's other project through their use of vocals. Whereas GYBE! avoids singing - opting instead for samples of ranting strangers - A Silver Mt. Zion embraces vocals and barrels straight ahead. After having a notable presence on the group's last release, This Is Our Punk-Rock, Thee Rusted Satellites Gather + Sing, the crooning helped to display Menuck's uncertainty and innocence. On Horses The Michigan Daily - Tuesday, May 3, 2005 - 11 Kutcher and Peet bomb in awful'Love' "Of course I have indie cred. Check out the Chuck Taylors in my promo photo." In the Sky, the lyrics play an even more essential role on every track. "Teddy Roosevelt's Guns" is a bastard- ization of the Canadian national anthem. Eerie string arrangements give way to Menuck and a chorus of singers crying "Canada, O Canada, I ain't never been your son." The chanting is overcome by a mass of feedback, squealing guitars, cymbal flurries and Menuck's screams. The last movement in "God Bless Our Dead Marines" is a choir harmoniz- ing with and following Menuck's lead: "When the world is sick / Can someone be well?/ But I dreamt we were all beau- tiful and strong." The other voices slowly fade, and Menuck is left to sing the last line with only a downtrodden piano to accompany him. His shaky, uncertain voice fits the lyrics perfectly and also contributes to the subdued atmosphere of the song. Still, Horses In the Sky is lacking in the way of instrumentation. The focus on vocals and lyrics leads the group to disre- gard much of the instrumental power that marked their previous work. Where this album is more emotional, their previous works sounded more dynamic and bois- terous. And while they are the focus of the album, the lyrics and their presentation aren't always stellar. Menuck sings with a very unique voice, but he uses it at unfor- tunate times and in inopportune ways throughout the album. The title track "Horses In the Sky" begins with a soft guitar line and Menuck's vocals. Here, his out-of-tune singing is more annoying than unnerving or eerie; it's not a conduit for the lullaby-like melody. A Silver Mt. Zion has always been interesting because of how different they are from GYBE! and how frequently they change styles. On Horses In the Sky, the group believes they've found their niche by using more vocals and putting instrumentals in the background. Unfor- tunately, their signature and best style is not having one at all. By Zach Borden Daily Arts Writer Fit~m REVIEW f f There's nothing wrong with romantic comedies that don't rein- vent the wheel, but audiences expect A Lot Like a little innovation Love or spark once in a while. But films At the Showcase like "A Lot Like and Quality 16 Love" prove that Touchstone it's possible to completely screw up all the elements of this beloved genre in one movie. The film follows seven years of the romantic misadventures of Oli- ver (Ashton Kutcher) and Emily (Amanda Peet, "Identity"). The two originally meet on an airline flight, where they, er, join the mile-high club. When they arrive in New York City, Oliver spots Emily on the street and the two spend the day together on a whim. Then, their budding romance comes to a halt - and they reconnect again. The cycle repeats over and over as they face the usual ups and downs of twentysomething romance, up until the film's hackneyed, easily foreseeable climax. It may all be cookie-cutter mate- rial, but what makes "A Lot Like Love" impossible to believe is that the story doesn't give a single reason for Emily and Oliver to be together. The two don't have a single meaningful conversation during their seven years, not even one to show them connecting on a basic level. Even worse are the played-out pop songs from the late '94s and early 'O0s that are embarrassingly used to highlight the time period (Eagle Eye Cherry's "Save Tonight" lives on!) and the sappy moments that are meant to manipulate the audience. "A Lot Like Love" contains quite a bit of pointless filler, such as a road trip that Oliver and Emily go on that does nothing to develop the their already vaguely defined relation- ship. There aren't many laughs to be found, either, unless having poor Oliver wear an Oklahoma sweatshirt in New York City and giving him a bitchy younger sister are supposed to be groundbreaking comedic gems. Another problem with the film is the lack of chemistry between Kutcher and Peet. This is a crucial element to any movie romance, and when two actors can't even pull that off - espe- cially with an already mediocre script - there's just no silver lining to be found. This isn't helped by the fact that Kutcher's appeal as a leading man is hard to see, especially considering' his low-key turn as Oliver. Even more disappointing is Peet, who is usually a good actress but doesn't make Emily as intriguing as she should have been. Ultimately, the film doesn't offer any insight into the nature of relationships or even on how love brings people to unexpected places at the most unex- pected times. Even more frustrating is that during their seven-year adventure, Oliver and Emily don't change as peo- ple or develop any real spark as a cou- ple. Watching "A Lot Like Love" is like spending an hour and a half in a tedious and pointless romantic comedy hell.