-~ ~ U
Vlnxplays the Ark
Tonight only, it's VInx, who blends African music, jazz and '40s music
Into his unique sound. His voice and his drums are his only instruments
but the sound is full of history and rich with possibilities. Catch him at
the Ark, Ann Arbor's premier acoustic venue. Tickets are $13.75 in
advance and can be purchased at Schoolkids' Records; call 763-8587
for more information.
Soak up Sponge's infectious live energy
By Elzabeth Lucas
Daily Arts Writer
Anyonewho turned on aradio this past
summer has probably heard a song or two
by Sponge. Some ofus loved their instant
hits "Plowed," "Molly" and, most re-
cently, "Rainin"' while others swore
they'd take a sledgehammer to the stereo
if they heard that damn song again. But
the most interesting fact about their con-
stant airplay was this: Sponge was a De-
troit band, and Sponge was making it big.
Oddly enough, the band didn't focus
on regional appeal in the beginning.
"We played the Ritz and St. Andrews a
lot,but we tried to shy away from being
just a Detroit band," recalled drummer
Jimmy Paluzzi. "But now that we've
achieved some success, we can bring
that back. We're always going to play
Detroit on tours."
Before the band started, members
Vinnie, Tim Cross and Mike Cross were
in a band called Loudhouse. "They had
a deal with Virgin Records for about a
minute," said Paluzzi. "They got
dropped, but that was the start of this
nucleus. Vinnie knew of Joe (Mazzola),
and I knew of Vinnie ... and that's
pretty much that."
"That" seems an understated way to
describe Sponge's subsequent story.
Their debut album, "Rotting Pinata,"
did not have stunningly original music
or lyrics. But its enthusiastic guitars
and catchy, if repetitive, refrains were
enough to produce four hit singles and
instant popular appeal.
After all, it's not every new band that
tours with the likes of Live and
Candlebox. However, Paluzzi doesn't
seem overawed by this fact. "The best
part about this tour is that we're not in
a van anymore - we have buses," he
said enthusiastically. "With Live, we'd
come into the gig in a van, the crew and
us, and here these guys were with three
buses ... but now the crew has one and
we have one. So touring is very cool."
Success, in general, hasn't greatly
altered Sponge's outlook. "I wasn't
wildly surprised when we made it big,
because I put a lot of time and a lot of
years into doing this," Paluzzi said. "If
this had happened to me when I was 20,
I'd have gotten a huge ego and been a
total idiot. But now, I think that
everyone's really grounded about it."
Understandably, the band doesn't
plan to change an approach that works.
"When we write songs, some just start
as a jam, and then someone will come
up with a riff," Paluzzi said. "The lyrics
are Vinnie's department, since he's the
vocalist. And on the next album, I don't
think it'll be outrageously different.
We're just gonna continue with what
we're doing."
When asked where he eventually wanted
the band's career to go, Paluzzi said,
"I'd like to be doing the same thing,just
at another level. Instead of, say, warm-
ing up for Candlebox, we'd want to be
headlining. As long as we can continue
to make albums, because I'll always be
doingmusic, someway, somehow. Man,
even if I lost both arms and both legs -
I can't imagine what else I'd be doing."
Detroit's effect on Sponge's music
should also remain the same. "Ironi-
cally enough, I was influenced by a lot
of Detroit bands when I was growing
up," Paluzzi said. "Alice Cooper and
Grand Funk Railroad were a huge in-
fluence on me, and of course there was
Ted Nugent."
Paluzzi thinks that the tradition of De-
troit music is experiencing a revival.
"We've always had music in Detroit -
it was just never a major city where
you'd go to find music, like New York
or L.A. or Nashville," he said. "Now
that's changed, which is kind of cool.
There's a couple bands that are making
some headway, like Speedball and
Horse and ICP. I hope this whole De-
troit scene explodes."
So it looks like those driven insane by
the nth chorus of "Plowed" can take
heart. Sponge doesn't have to be re-
membered for their brilliant songs -
they can be looked at as the vanguard of
an all-new Detroit music scene. Fans of
the band don't have to worry, either.
Sponge plans on giving us more of what
we like, and in the meantime, their
current hits won't be off the radio for
quite a while.
kmmmmm
The Bosstones are
The Mighty Mighty Bosstones just plain rule, Their love of plaid and their ska
heritage will always remain a part of their fans' hearts. Their live shows are
fantastic, and they've got the right attitude. Yeah, they're pretty cool.
By Mark Carlson
Daily Arts Writer
After spending the summer playing
to millions of hip Lollapalooza goers,
the Mighty Mighty Bosstones are al-
ready making the club rounds again.
According to head Bosstone Dicky
Barrett, the super alterna-tour went
much better than they could have ex-
pected.
"It went all right," said Barrett by
phone Monday afternoon. "It went a lot
better than I imagined it would. It was
fun, the people on the tour were great.
We got along really well with the guys
in the Jesus Lizard and Pavement. Cy-
press Hill were cool too." Barrett also
emphasized the relaxed atmosphere of
the summer tour, adding that "It freed
us up and allowed us to go with our plan
ofgetting some stuff written. Weplayed
45 minutes in the middle of the after-
noon, and the rest of the day was ours,
so we took advantage of it and were
creative and sat together and wrote. It
was a nice way to spend the summer."
The band may have a lot of new
material ready to play, but don't expect
a new album for a while. "For this
album, we want to get together and
reacquaint ourselves with each other,
get in ourpractice space and think about
what we're writing," said Barrett.
"We're not gonna put this album out
until we know for a fact that it's the best
possible way to skin whatever cat it is
we want to skin."
RECORDS.
Wet Wet Wet
Picture This
This is a real nice disc. The sing-
ing is very nice, the musicianship is
competent, the production is fine,
everything is just swell. Why is it
that I can't listen to an entire song
without thinking that I have some-
thing else I should be doing?
The Scottish pop group Wet Wet
Wet has managed to put out an al-
bum that is remarkably dry dry dry.
While this quartet has seen moder-
ate success on the British charts
(most notably with a cover of The
Beatles' "With a Little Help From
My Friends" back in '88), their
breakthrough in the States has come
about recently from the "Four Wed-
THE MIGHTY
MIGHTY
BOSSTONES WITH'
HAGFISH AND
ALLIGATOR GUN
Where: St. Andrew's Hall
When: Saturday
Doors open at 7:30 p.m.
Catching their breath and getti
the studio is a long way off
Bosstones, though. Right now
concentrating on what is most
tant to them: Touring themsel
an early grave. Said Barrett about their
endless touring schedule: "We're not
conventional in the sense that we say,
'let's go out and make an album and
then tour to promote it.' We're a con-
tinually touring band and occasionally
we take some time out to record an
album. I think that we're primarily a
touring band and we're always striving
to be a better recorded band, but they're
two entirely separate things for us. We
don't achieve what we achieve live in
the studio. We play stuff from all our
albums, we don't go 'we're finished
with the album, let's go tour to sell it."'
Barrett is right on the money about
not being able to recreate their live
shows on record. How couldthey, when
their live shows usually include more
excitement than a three ring circus, a
mighty mighty great
MondayNight Footballgame,arockin' little time dancing with anybody t
house party, and a swingin' jazz club, can make it through the jumbled pil
all put together? Bosstones shows have bodies at the foot of the stage and cli
become legendary to all who have sur- into the spotlight. Barrett does ho
vived them, in part due to how great the however, that guests on stage do
band sounds, and in part due to the outstay their welcome. "We don't
absolute lunacy that occurs when the courage people to stay up there
band politely asks the bouncers to go whole show, 'cause that would n
away and allow people to do whatever they're part of the band, and I would
they want, including dancing with the feel right about it. I'd have to pay the
band and stage diving. then. To tell you the truth, that's h
According to Barrett, all ofthis chaos we got Ben, and we wouldn't want tI
ing into really just gets back to one simple point to happen again," commented Barn
for the of logic. "A lot of times there's bounc- referring to the band's official "danci
they're ers and security that don't know what Ben Carr. "He was just a mad sta
impor- the hell's going on, and in attempting to diver who wouldn't get off the stage,
ves into stop somebody who's trying to franti- we kept him around."
dings and a Funeral" soundtrack
with a cover of the Troggs' '68
classic, "Love Is All Around."
Along with the folk rock "Gypsy
Girl," the Troggs cover manages to
become the only other highlight of
this disc.
The group often hints at fresh
ideas with melodic tunes like "Julia
Says" or the "Piano Man"-esque
"Love is My Shepherd," but in ev-
ery instance originality is choked
off by a wave of mediocrity. Suc-
cess in the States may not be to far
off for this mellow Scottish pop
group, but it will not lie in the wake
of the album "Picture This."
- Tim Furlong
See RECORDS, page 9
M1993 Universal City Studios. Inc All Rights Reserved
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Write the Daily
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'What good is sitting alone in your room," wrote John Kander and Fred Ebb -
"come hear the music play." Job Christenson and Michael Budewitz are hoping
you'll whistle that tune tonight - on your way to their "Evening of Cabaret" at i
University Club. Christenson, a junior in the Musical Theater Program, will be
singing the songs of Cole Porter, George Gershwin, Noel Coward, and many othi
In this original collaboration. School of Music senior Budewitz will accompany 0
piano. In case you missed him in "42nd Street" and "Oh Cowardl," Christenson
an energetic and charismatic performer, and will surely make "An Evening of
Cabaret" a memorable one. The show begins at 9 p.m. In the University Club;
tickets are $4 at the door. "Right this way, your table's waiting...."
3
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