12-The Michigan Daily -Thursday, September 7, 1995

RECORDS
Continued from page 11
Diana King
Tougher Than Love
Work/Sony Records
Since the release of her debut
single "Shy Guy," which can also be
found on the "Bad Boys" soundtrack,
many have found themselves con-
verted Diana Kings groupies. Her
music, a crude mixture of reggae and
techno/dance influences, has a mysti-
cal appeal for some. However, many
may find "Tougher Than Love" a
little difficult to consume and appre-
ciate without first experiencing a little
indigestion. Ranging from very slow
to fast enough, King's songs take some
getting used to. Only many probably
won't have the patience to wait that
long. Those people I feel sorry for
because they're missing a rather in-
teresting, if not outright amazing,
musical experience.
Diana King is traversing some
highly uncharted musical terrain com-
bining traditionally clashing sounds
into something both articulate and
fun to listen and dance to. Granted,
King shouldn't expect a mass follow-
ing too quickly; many are too chicken
to leave the mainstream and follow
her on her solitary musical quest to
find a place where she can make her
mark for fear they may actually come
to enjoy what they hear. Therefore,
only time will tell if, in the long run,
King's artistic work will gain enough
notoriety to project her to immortal-
ity, or at least enough popularity to
warrant a sophomore LP.
- Eugene Bowen
Laughing Hyenas
Merry Go Round
Touch and Go
Yup, this is a reissue of a release
bundled with some unreleased mate-
rial by those semi-famous rockers who
you might see at a local record store
selling used CDs.
John Brannon is in fine screaming
form on these mostly 1987 record-

ings. It's a satisfying kind of gravel
sound emanating from his throat when
he croons "Stain the walls with love/
Cause baby I'm the setting sun/And
I'm coming down!" on "Stain."
Of course, the Hyenas are their
raucous musical selves on this album
as well. With psychotic guitar, bass
and drums, they're obvious descen-
dants of various olderand more widely
known Ann Arbor bands who shall
remain nameless. But they're also
very much of the now, with noted
producer Butch Vig at the controls.
Not that it's all hard knocks and
power chords. "Soul Kiss" is a spiffy
off kilter track that slows it down a
little before speeding it back up again.
All in all, "Merry Go Round" is a
representative Laughing Hyenas al-
bum: Pretty hard, pretty loud, pretty
good. Pretty much says it all.
- Ted Watts
Kilo
Get This Party Started
WRAP Records
You've probably heard some of
his rap singles like "Tick Tock" and
"Hear What I Hear," especially if
you're from the Southeastern part of
the country. Though his fame has
been secured in the South, and many
of his singles earned airplay in other
parts ofthe country, Kilo's name never
grew into a household word outside
of Atlanta, GA. Nevertheless, this
ATL native is back with his fifth
release whose format is much like the
previous four. Like the previous four,
"Get This Party Started" is da bomb,
and like the previous four, it has a
couple of singles that will get mad
playtime outside of Georgia.
And, like the previous four, this
release will be similarly unsuccessful
in establishing 22-year old Kilo na-
tionwide. But, "Get This Party
Started" is still a great buy.
Once again, Kilo features serious
songs like "White Horse" which de-
tails his disdain for interracial rela-
tionships and "Animosity," a slower
song in the tradition of Shaqille

O'Neal's "Biological Didn't Bother"
chronicling how his mother left him
as a child. (He was raised by his
grandparents.)
Ofcourse, "Get This Party Started"
is chock full of party raps, as you'll
quickly realizeupon listeningto "You
Da ," "Nasty Dancer" and the
scratch-filled "Mega Mix," which also
features samples from his earlier hits.
It has always puzzled me why
Kilo would choose a stage name that
lends legitimacy to a drug that he so
ruthlessly attacked in his best-selling
single, "Cocaine," and which he again
dogs in "Cocaine '95," another cut on
"Get This Party Started." Aside from
this double-take, however, you will
quickly see that Kilo's raps and use of
beats and samples are tight and well-
made down to the last ounce.
- Eugene Bowen
Teenage Fanclub
Grand Prix
Geffen Records
Mature, seamless, and brilliant:
three words that spring to mind upon
listening to the fourth long-player by
Glasgow's Teenage Fanclub. The
band's recording of "Grand Prix" sig-
naled a 180-degree turn-around from
the approach to their last album, the
underrated "Thirteen," two years ago;
instead of spending months upon
months sonically doodling without a
producer, the Fannies brought in
David Bianco (Tom Petty, the Pixies)
and tackled the job in minimal time
last Fall, resulting in one cracker-jack
of an album.
"Grand Prix" has all the familiar
charm of TFC's last three albums-
the infectious melodies, the three-
part harmonies, the clever yet unas-
suming lyrics, the soft shimmer of the
Beach Boys and the hard edge of
Crazy Horse-butvaries significantly
as well. Lengthwise, "Grand Prix" is
shorter, by individual song and over-
all. Rather than kicking it off with an
epic, as has been Fanclub tradition,
the album opens with the punchy two-

No. not an outtake from "The Usual

Suspects." but Glasgow's Teenage Fanclub.


and-a-half minute "About You," sav-
ing the string section featured in "The
Concept" and "Hang On" for the sev-
enth track, "Tears". All of the subse-
quent songs are shorter in length than
usual, and the quartet reserves the
obligatory instrumental for the
album's final selection, "Hardcore/
Ballad," actually trimming it down to
occupy only half of the song.
Whether it be an attack on phoni-
ness in "Verisimilitude" or in the bare-
all of emotions in "Mellow Doubt,"
themes of honesty and allegiance to
all things genuine seem to recur
throughout the album. Teenage
Fanclub avoids pretension like the
rock'n' roll plague; even more objec-
tive songs like "Neil Jung" and the
aforementioned "Tears"- more like
anecdotes than bitter attacks- con-
tain sympathetic sentiments and never
condescend.
All in all, Blake, Love and
McGinley, joined by new drummer

Paul Quinn, sound more confident
than ever on "Grand Prix," both in
their musicianship and in their lyri-
cal approach, once again proving
themselves as master pop-tunesmiths
and exceptional singers capable of
delivering their songs in a unique,
accessible style uncontested by their
contemporaries.
-Thomas Crowley
Tina Moore
Tina Moore
Scotti Bros. Records
First came Aretha, then Patti,
Whitney and Mariah. Only a special
breed of singer deserves a place among
these women. Now there's Tina, and
her debut, self-named LP establishes
her worthiness.
Beauty, seductiveness and a voice
few, if any, newcomers can come
close to touching, are Ms. Moore's
trademarks. From start to finish, "Tina
Moore" has any-and everything that

anyone could ever hope for in an
R&B release. Tina sings party music
("Never Gonna Let You Go," her first
single, and "Never without Love,"
whose beats sound remotely like Soul
II Soul's "Back to Life"), but it's with
her slow songs that Tina makes a real
name for herself.
If you thought Mariah Carey's
brand of vocal prowess was unique
only to her, a peek at Moore's "All I
Can Do" will quickly cure you ofthat
folly. Furthermore, Moore brings into
her music a soulfulness that has va-
cated most modern R&B songs. Cuts
like the old school "At Last" and the
emotion-packed "Color Me Blue" are
full of that often-sought-but-rarely-
found feeling. In short, this girl's voice
is pure butta.
'ina Moore" features some of
the smoothest, most rhythmic beats
and music to come out since Chant6
Moore's (no relation) "A Love Su-
preme," which was also released in
1995. Tina Moore should have no
regrets about her debut performance.
This LP isn't just outstanding, it's an
inspiration toR&B lovers everywhere.
- Eugene Bowen


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