6A — Friday, October 25, 2019
Arts
The Michigan Daily — michigandaily.com
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By David Alfred Bywaters
©2019 Tribune Content Agency, LLC
10/25/19
Los Angeles Times Daily Crossword Puzzle
Edited by Rich Norris and Joyce Nichols Lewis
10/25/19
ANSWER TO PREVIOUS PUZZLE:
Release Date: Friday, October 25, 2019
ACROSS
1 Bewildered
6 Public row
11 Friend
14 Missouri tribe
15 Lake that
ultimately feeds
8-Down
16 “__ we good?”
17 Bingeing on
chicken pieces?
19 Meadow
20 Vote against
21 Employee’s
request
22 Tale of Achilles
and Agamemnon
24 Tasting room
container
25 Soon, to a bard
26 Roman
naturalist’s
baseball-playing
namesake?
33 Climbing and
passing places
34 Preserves, in a
way
35 “Hooray!”
36 Inch, e.g.
37 Source of
the fairy-tale
sequence that
creates four long
puzzle puns
39 Interlaced
40 Executive gp.
41 Chart entries
42 Tailed orbiter
43 Prize coveted by
competitive trees?
47 Negotiate a green
48 Echelon
49 Airport conveyors,
or what are
sometimes placed
on them
51 Wispy clouds
53 Spanish she-bear
56 __ Today
57 Sports Officialdom
Illustrated cover
image?
60 Apple product
61 Superficial
62 Boredom
63 Take to court
64 Is crowded (with)
65 Falls from the sky
DOWN
1 Low
2 Nearly 9% of
Earth’s surface
area
3 Half-baked
4 Chicken producer
5 Pays a share of
6 Arab leader
7 Subjects of bovine
mastication
8 Lake ultimately
fed by 15-Across
9 Denial from
Denis
10 Auto mechanic’s
concerns
11 Pop or tot, e.g.
12 Bailiwick
13 Heavy metal
18 Right on the map
23 Web prefix with
cat
24 Tech review
website
25 “__ Nobody’s
Business”: blues
standard
26 Assess the depth
of
27 “Blue Sky” Oscar
winner
28 Where everything
should be
29 Online money
30 Ventilation source
31 Roof edges
32 “I can’t go all
my life waiting
to catch you
between
husbands”
speaker
37 Donation
38 Big comm.
company, once
39 __ load
41 Trendy
nightclub
42 Pine, e.g.
44 Son of
Akhenaten
45 Box score
statistic
46 Gambling
game involving
matching cards
49 Borrows
without
returning
50 Jacob’s brother
51 Dove home
52 List part
53 Hyatt
competitor
54 Like a web
55 Sale warning
58 Tint
59 Duessa’s foe in
Spenser’s “The
Faerie Queene”
Classifieds
Call: #734-418-4115
Email: dailydisplay@gmail.com
HELP WANTED
HELP WANTED
Raise the ruff!
It’s Friday!!!
Kero Kero Bonito is on a hot streak. The British indie-
pop trio has spent the last year radiating big suburban
energy with the nostalgic Time ‘N’ Place, and has since
widened their sights with Civilisation I, dropping right
before their North American tour. If Bonito Generation
was a celebration of inner childhood cheer and Time ‘N’
Place was a reflection of early-adulthood melancholy,
Civilisation I is a grimdark mourning of society’s
imminent implosion. I can think of no better tunes to
get down to in Detroit than KKB’s new über-doomer
anthems.
It’s the night of Oct. 16, and I stroll into the Magic Stick
with my concert companion. For some reason venue
security is not taking shit from nobody tonight. The box
office is past the security check, so I get big X’s magic
marker’d onto both my under-21 hands and get badgered
for my camera bag before finally getting a press ticket and
entering the venue.
The
concert
opens
with
a
performance from
Negative
Gemini.
She’s
only
got
30,000
monthly
listeners on Spotify
but the crowd is
dancing like she’s
got 30 million. This
is a testament to
the loveliness of her
groovy electropop.
It’s
genuinely
dreamy
and
I
contemplate getting
some of her merch
(it
looks
pretty
cool).
Between
performances,
I
nervously inch my
way through the
tightly packed crowd, hoping to get a picture when the
band comes on. But I’m shy and I’m nervous and this is my
first time trying photo coverage so I stop before getting
to the front row. I don’t want to take space from the
superfans who probably lined up long before the doors
opened to secure their spots. A group watches me fumble
with my camera, trying to find a good angle between the
shoulders of two people much taller than myself, before
motioning for me to fill in between them. They are all full
of smiles and encouragement for my concert coverage as
the band takes the stage.
In addition to their core members — Sarah Bonito on
vocals, Gus Lobban on keys and Jamie Bulled on bass —
guitarist James Rowland and drummer Jennie Walton
join the band’s live performances. Except for Sarah, the
band enters the stage to a steady roar. 30 seconds later,
Sarah saunters in to the tune of hundreds of screaming
fans. It suddenly occurs to me that I forgot earplugs. I
think I need them more for the screaming than the music.
The show opens with the foreboding bopper
“Battlelines” and the world is indeed ending, so we have
every reason to get down. At any given moment there is
also good reason to scream, cry, laugh or all three at once.
Sarah holds a stuffed flamingo as she raps “Flamingo,”
waving it tauntingly over the crowd. Another stuffed
animal graces the stage, this time a crocodile during
“Pocket Crocodile.” Gus, rocking a Bob Evans baseball
cap, is full of goofy quips and banter. “This one’s dedicated
to the Detroit People Mover,” he says before one song.
Sarah enlists the crowd to sing happy birthday to Jennie.
A fan’s phone ends up on stage, and the band responds by
taking a crowd selfie with it. There’s one thing I witness
that makes my life complete: Gus and Sarah perform the
iconic voicemail interlude from “Break,” complete with a
pink prop telephone.
At this point, I think nothing could make my heart
more full. Then Sarah calls for a joint performance by
the “KKB and Detroit choir” to do a heartfelt singalong
to “Sometimes.” As she stands over the crowd with her
baton, a cluster of devout fans (myself included) cram
beneath her waving arms, belting every last lyric. Jamie
even dances a jolly jig onstage. I don’t notice it at first —
I can’t see it behind the outstretched arms of a group
of fans recording the scene — but I witness Jamie’s
goofiness through
the cameras of their
raised phones. My
heart overflows.
Much
of
the
band’s
charm
comes
from
the
glossy twinkles and
chimes
peppered
throughout
their
production that are
difficult to replicate
live, but this does
not stop KKB. The
band is as faithful
as could be to their
quirky
sample-
filled sound. They
even recreate the
cacophonous noise
breakdown of “Only
Acting.” It speaks to
their creativity and
the strength of their relationships with their instruments.
The band gives their goodbyes after “Picture This,”
but Detroit would not walk away without hearing their
favorite song. When the chants begin — “TRAMPOLINE!
TRAMPOLINE! TRAMPOLINE!” — they will not stop
until the band returns. Sure enough, they waltz back
onstage and blast into a cover of U2’s “Vertigo.” In a cute
homage to Detroit, James plays the opening to Eminem’s
“Lose Yourself” on guitar. Finally, “Trampoline” begins,
and the floor of the venue flexes to an alarming degree
as the crowd bounces, but I cannot stop jumping and
jumping and jumping.
All my energy has been jumped out of me. I walk out of
the venue into rainy weather and a $45 parking ticket, but
no amount of rain (or financial misfortune) can drown
the joy and elation that is post-KKB-concert bliss. Kero
Kero Bonito just made a goddamn bounce house out of
Detroit, and I am humbled by their wholesomeness. My
co-concertgoer and I scroll through pictures in the car.
Most of them are ones she took of me shedding tears
during the “Sometimes” singalong. Come back soon,
KKB, I think to myself. Come back soon.
Kero Kero Bonito brings
love and light to Detroit
DYLAN YONO
Daily Arts Writer
CONCERT REVIEW
BOOK REVIEW
One thing that I retained from my introductory
psychology class was that memory, which I believed
was somewhat permanent, is unreliable. Take
cognitive psychologist Elizabeth Loftus’s famous
car experiment for example. In it, participants
watched a car crash. The participants had to estimate
the car’s speed. Loftus was able to manipulate the
participants responses by framing her questions.
By using adjectives that described a severe crash,
Loftus found that participants were more likely to
report the car traveling faster than it actually was.
Just as I started to deconstruct everything I learned
from “Law and Order,” we discussed false memories,
and, in the ways that Loftus was able to retroactively
influence the perception of certain events, James
Coan demonstrated that people can claim to recall
entire events from their childhood that were false.
What happens if we can make memories disappear
altogether?
Described as a “haunting Orwellian novel,” Yoko
Ogawa’s “The Memory Police” imagines a dystopian
island where memories of certain objects disappear.
First, ribbons, bells, emeralds and stamps go. Then,
perfume, photographs and even birds. After a day of
commemoration, most of the island’s inhabitants are
unaffected by these changes. They don’t even notice
that these seemingly insignificant objects are gone.
For example, when the narrator, a struggling novelist,
experiences perfume after it disappeared, she cannot
reconcile it to anything more than a “few drops of
water.”
“Some girls held the bottles up to their noses one last
time — but the ability to smell the perfume had already
faded, along with all memory of what it had meant.
The river reeked for two or three days afterward, and
some fish died. But no one seemed to notice. You see,
the very idea of ‘perfume’ had been disappeared from
their heads.”
That precious memory, and everything that it
entailed, is gone forever. The authoritative Memory
Police ensures that no one ever recalls these objects
again — even if they have to make people disappear,
too.
After the young woman discovers that her editor,
R, can still remember these objects even after they
had disappeared, she goes to great lengths to hide him
from the Memory Police. As more and more people
that the narrator is close to begin to vanish, the thrill
intensifies as the readers are left wondering if R will
meet the same fate.
For a novel described as “Orwellian,” the “The
Memory Police” was surprisingly slow. Each word
was carefully plucked to convey the most meaning. It
was like the “Memory Police” was embodying its own
themes, worrying that it, too, may fade over time. Even
paragraphs were powerful in a particular way, laden
with nostalgia and sentimentality. Right before the
narrator hides R, R tries to describe his memories of
the objects that had already disappeared:
“Even if they fade, something remains. Like tiny
seeds that might germinate again if the rain falls. And
even if a memory disappears completely, the heart
retains something. A slight tremor or pain, some bit of
joy, a tear.”
Without question, the prose is lovely. I found myself
pausing between chapters in order to absorb the
provocative themes. And still, I never felt a compulsion
to finish. Unlike George Orwell’s “1984,” I did not feel
as threatened by the Memory Police as I did by Big
Brother. From the beginning to the end, “The Memory
Police” was quiet. It relied on a slow-burn climatic
setup that did not pack a punch as masterfully as
other dystopias manage to. I wanted my mind to be
psychologically warped. I wanted to apply its heavy
surveillance to real-world situations, condemning the
NSA in my head. It’s easy to appreciate “The Memory
Police” for its prose, less so for its plot.
‘Memory’ falls just short
SARAH SALMAN
Daily Arts Writer
PENGUIN RANDOM HOUSE
Basement Arts broke from tradition this year
and opened their new season not with a play
or musical, but with their brand new “Latinx:
Caberéy.” Directed by School of Music, Theatre
& Dance senior Lauren Kenner with assistance
from SMTD sophomores Ruby Pérez and Sammie
Estrella, this performance gave Latinx identifying
students the chance to share the pride in their
culture with peers.
In a night full of singing, dancing, poetry and
virgin margaritas, everyone was alive with energy
and enthusiasm. Before even entering the small
studio, theatre-goers were offered a feast of Latinx
cuisine. Inside the studio, the set, designed by
Stamps sophomore Ryan Espitia, was vibrant and
homey, welcoming in the audience with bright
blankets and warm lights. The loving atmosphere
made the audience feel welcomed into the space
and involved in the show.
“Caberéy” included a variety of acts: Songs
ranged from traditional Spanish lullabies to
“Hamilton” ballads. Traditional Latin dances
were both performed and taught to the crowd,
and poignant poems were written by the students.
Some of the highlights include SMTD senior
Maya Ballester
and
SMTD
junior Cristina
Holder’s
rendition
of
“Remember
Me” from the
movie
“Coco,”
a beautiful duet
incorporating
both
Spanish
and
English
lyrics,
and
SMTD
sophomore
Sammie
Estrella’s poem
“Little
Brown
Hands,” a piece
about
growing
up Latinx.
Basement Arts provided a space for the
voices of underrepresented artists to soar. They
featured artists from different Latinx countries
and different backgrounds. In a stunning finale,
each artist spoke their name and the culture that
they identify with, proving that Latinx culture
conforms to no ideals and knows no boundaries.
Not only was this show necessary and important,
but it was fun. Whether gasping at a gut-wrenching
poem or clapping to a spirited Spanish song,
everyone was engaged and enjoying every minute.
Each performance illuminated a different aspect
of Latinx culture; some songs were in Spanish,
some songs were written by Latinx composers and
poems spoke to different facets of what it means to
identify as a Latinx artist.
What made the night so powerful was the
coming together of all of these unique artists and
experiences to celebrate a common culture. For
the artists involved, it was an opportunity to bond
over a commonality that society doesn’t always
allow them embrace. For the audience, it was a
chance to deepen our understanding of a likely
unfamiliar culture. Everyone needs the chance to
be introduced to these conversations to perpetrate
growth and understanding in our society.
Opening the season with such a powerful
statement on inclusivity within the theatre opens
Basement Arts up for further conversations about
important
topics.
This
show gave those
in the Latinx
community
a
place
to
use
their voices and
those
not
in
the community
a
place
to
listen.
Seeing
Basement Arts
on
the
track
to
inclusivity
gives us hope
for more events
like this in the
future
and
a
more inclusive
theatre
community.
‘Caberéy’ was illuminating
DANA PIERANGELI
Daily Arts Writer
COMMUNITY CULTURE REVIEW
The Memory
Police
Yoko Ogawa (translated by
Stephen Snyder)
Pantheon
Jan. 1, 2019
Much of the band’s charm
comes from the glossy
twinkles and chimes
peppered throughout their
production that are difficult
to replicate live, but this does
not stop KKB
For the artists involved,
it was an opportunity to
bond over a commonality
that society doesn’t always
allow them to embrace