10 - The Michigan Daily - Friday, October 13, 1995 $e EP CA 1000 Mona Lisas are a pretty good Runk band lost in a crowd ofpretty good Gunk bands. They have a decent guitar 'dund, tolerable lyrics, heartfelt, emo- Ainal vocals, and some rockin' tunes Aoing for them, but at this point, with cord companies shoving punk rock down our throats like stale tater-tots, vho really wants to hear another pretty ' od punk band? : These guys actually have a really -eod scheme to combat this problem. They do a hilarious cover of Alanis Morrisette's "You Oughta Know" and stick it at the end of the disc as a bonus track. The song starts out just as stale and emotionless as Morrisette's melo- dramatic radio hit, and then charges into a fun and furious punk rockthrasher. Sure, the song doesn't make the rest of the disc any better, but it will raise enough of a buzz to get people go out and buy it. Actually, the cover is so much fun, it might actually be worth buying the disc just for that one track. Of course, the rest of the album isn't all bad. From the opening rocker "How Would You Know" to the last original, "Instilled And Lost," the band rocks hard in the tradition of fellow west coast punkers NOFX and Bad Reli- gion. There's even a bit of the Descen- dants influence to be heard. The ep's slowest (and probably best) track, "My Embarrassing Suicide," trudges through some great heavy riffing and some re- ally cool bass lines. 1000 Mona Lisas have made a mar- keting gamble with this release. Al- though the cover may get more people to notice them, it might also cause them to be remembered only as "that band that did that Alanis Morrisette song." That would be a shame, because, again, they really are a pretty good punk band. - Mark Carlson Blue Vinyl 9:03 Silver Toroise Sound Labs Local bands on local labels usually conjure up a particular sound is people's minds. Raspy, fuzzy sound quality coupled with amateurish song writing and mediocre playing tends to be the standard fare. They're usually albums put out so the band can say, "Hey, we put out an album." Not Blue Vinyl. Recorded when three of the members were seniors at Ann Arbor's Community High School (the drummer was a junior), "9:03" has style, skill and balls. The first track "Sugar Me," in a Bruce Springsteen rock-funk vein, displays qualities rarely seen in high school bands. The song, an original composi- tion, has arranged horn parts, excellent solos and above all an amazing voice. Laith al-Saadi, vocals and guitar, has a set of pipes uncommon to men twice his age. Much like Howlin' Wolf and John Fogerty, Laith's voice has a gravelly intensity that makes punk-pop weenies like Green Day and Jawbreaker sound like Tiny Tim (the guy with the ukulele, not the crutches). "Rich Man's Son," the second track, is beholden to the acoustic groove of the Doobie Brothers, with Laith's voice and guitar (as well as Chris Traugott on guitar) adding a smooth pulse. Although the band's specialty is the blues, they opened for Buddy Guy on one of his dates in Michigan, blue tune make up only about half of the tracks. The most notable of these being "Open Arms" a minor blues and "Georgia" recorded live at Cava Java. On the live recording you can hear just how well the band can stroke an audience's audio g-spot, Laith's voice simulating the exact timbre of a two by four sliding across a dirt road. Tracks like "Ridin' My Tail" and "Look Out!" definitely have a Chicago jump feel, with Green Hills junior (a junior, a junior for Christ's sake) Dan "The Man" Zimmerman blowing some fat harp. In addition to the fine vocal work, the guitar offerings of Laith and Traugott are exemplary, for guys of any age. Laith is definitely of the blues-rock, drawing technically blinding influences from Rush and Santana. Traugott is rooted more in the urban blues sound, sounding heavily like Buddy Guy and Eric Clapton. "9:03" is an album worth picking up. Twice. Give it to a friend. Send the band a check. Available at Schoolkids Records and other local stores, Blue Vinyl puts together a hard-core blues show that could peel the skin off the skull of the most jaded college rock dipsticks. - James Miller Check out these Babes Babes In Toyland is In the house tonight at St. Andrew's with an aN ages show. A ballsy trio, Babes In Toyland has been stirring independent music watchers' souls for a whole mess of years now. With their newest album, "Nemesister," the Babe. continue their tradition of loud rock with an especially harsh edge, harsh specifically In the department of singer. Kat Belland's voice. The single "Sweet '69" tore up the coaxial cables with its brilliant retroastyled video full of bouffants and a disconcerting melange of colors well suited to the ripped up energy of the song. And the recent release of several dance remixes of the song "We Are Family" is certainly bizarre enough to warrant some attention. And who can possibly forget Beavis yelling "Fire!" along with thel song "Bruise Violet?" No one who saw it, that's who. Well, doors to this worthwhile event open at 6:30 and tickets are $12. Lustre and Dumpster Juice open, but the Babes will still undoubtedly be hitting the stage eady In the evening. Get down. I Campfire Girls Mood Enhancer E.P. Interscope Records If you're hip to that whole "alterna- tive" scene, then the Campfire Girls are for you. They've got all the cliches down to a science. The weird little gui- tar ditties, the disenchanted singer, the lack of ability - its all there. It's like Stone Temple Pilots without Weiland and with less songwriting ability. But the 'Girls actually tread near the waters of respectability at points on the album. The guitar sounds in "Upon" and "p.f.a.m.g." are at the least interest- ing. "Upon" has a dissonant, clashing sensibility and "p.f.a.m.g." is an essay on gritty acoustic guitar sound."Homework" is something you can actually tap your foot to. Unfortu- nately every point that grabs your atten- tion is immediately followed by dis- torted vocal lines or other various stu- dio tricks that have no place at that moment in time. The high point of the album is easily "quick phone call." It's got a distinct groove that drags the tiniest bit -just enough to make you say "Hey my brother, that's cool." The lyrics actu- ally convey some sense of desperation and the singer's languid vocal style seems to fit for once. The song shows you how much you can get out of so little. Yet don't be fooled, overall this is not - I repeat is not - a good album. The vocals for the most part are down- right terrible. They've got all the flavor of distilled water. The singer's range encompasses three, maybe four notes max. The guitar seems to follow the same trend. They must figure they've got continuity, if nothing else. Add lyrics like "I am pink on the inside" and here comes trouble. So maybe they'll never put out an album that'll turn the musical world on its ear, but given some time and a little self-introspection, maybe they can someday put out something at least worthy of the name "Mood Enhancer E.P." - Tyler Brubaker 0. Love and Special Sauce Coast to Coast Motel Okeh/Epic Fans of G. Love and Special Sauce know that the last thing the group wants to do is stick to convention. Their self- titled first album could be found in an unprecedented number of places in a record store -blues, rap, alternative or even rock. After finding moderate suc- cess with the rap single "Baby's Got Sauce," and anchoring their perfor- mances at H.O.R.D.E. with it, one might assume that the rap would be well rep- resented on "Coast to Coast Motel." Well, not a chance. This album is all about summertime street-corner laid- back blues, as can be heard on their first single, "Kiss and Tell." G. Love's ram- bling, sloppy vocal style again bridges the gap between spoken word and sing- ing, sometimes to the point of threaten- ing the form of the songs, but rhythm section members Jeffrey Clemens and Jimmy Prescott unfailingly hold the grooves together. G. Love will never be mistaken for a great guitarist, but his personal style is clear, and he does have the chops to rip off some great lines. On the second to last tune, "Small Fish," the group takes a break from the lazy blues feel of the rest ofthe album to turn out a crazy funk jam, anchored by an angular, totally unexpected introductory guitar riff. Love then lays back and lets the power- house bass and drums do the grooving, but the point is made that he can cover more genres than just the blues. This one song, while not indicative of the rest of the album as far as style, is nevertheless worthy oflisteningto again and again. It's hard not to get caught up in how much fun G. Love & Special Sauce are having on this album, just'like it was on their first. "Coastto Coast Motel"elimi- nated at least one category (rap) that they might have been thrown into be- fore, but maybe this album has more of the kind ofmusic that they've wanted to play all along. These guys are playing whatever the hell they want to - instead of aiming for a particular market and the result is record that sounds as loose and fun-loving 'as it gets. - David Cook See Seaweed rock Tacoma, Washington rockers Seaweed will be playing St. Andrew's Hall in Detroit tonight with their Hollywood Records labelmates Into Another. The punk-rooted hard rock band's latest release "Spanaway" is a great slice of the band's six year history pie. Seaweed's good songwriting combined with their biting lyrics make their music utterly addictive. Be sure not to miss this all ages show with openers Fitz of Depression. Tickets are only $8, and worth every penny! Don't make me beg and plead any more. Seaweed. Into Another. Fitz of Depression. Be there,, or don't be there. Call (313) 961-MELT K I Winter commencement Sdent 5t' The Office of University Relations is making a Call for Sentries for a Student Speaker for Winter Commencement Sunday, December 17, 1995 2:00 p.m. Crisler Arena CRTRIA - Must be receiving a degree during Summer Term 1995 or Fall Term 1995 SuBMIT - Cover sheet with name, local address, and phone number - Typed draft of speech (no more than 5 minutes in length) - Audio cassette tape of yourself reading speech i r El WEYlIhlC N K W < W W N, EUElE U .U aUU N EkI