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(09/28/04 5:37am)
The University of Namibia Choir presented a musical play integrating African and Western musical traditions and languages to promote cultural understanding Monday night at the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center.\nThis was the first of several U.S. performances for the group, who will travel to George Washington, Rutgers and Yale universities before taking the 23-hour-long flight home to Namibia in two weeks, said Danie Strydom, the choir's stage director and UNAM performing arts lecturer.\nAs part of its visit to IU, the choir conducted a workshop at IU's International Vocal Ensemble, directed by Mary Goetze, Monday afternoon. The performers will also visit the African American Choral Ensemble today.\nThe 19 men and women of the choir danced and sang in costumes made of cream-colored fabric and brown leather that combined traditional and modern Namibian designs. The choir members had the opportunity to design their own costumes for the performance, which they embellished with fabric head-wraps and cowrie-shell anklets that helped to keep time when they stomped their feet.\nStrydom said that the choir's multicultural presentation represented the melding of different cultures, backgrounds and religions.\n"Although my ways are not your ways, I respect you, and I expect you to respect me," Strydom said during the play. "Let us strike hands and stand together and be one together for the future."\nThe performance consisted of songs from Namibia, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe, in several indigenous African languages and English. \nThe choir members, all UNAM students, sang and spoke lines in African languages, and Strydom narrated the scenes in English.\nThe songs, sung a capella in four-part harmony, told the story of a village and its problems at the time that the first Europeans went to Namibia, Strydom said. \nThough the arrival of the Europeans brought conflict to the village, Strydom said these rifts were resolved at the end of the play.\n"(The prior conflict) doesn't matter because they fuse toward the end. You can have the right to decide (your beliefs)," Strydom said.\nDawn Whitehead, a doctoral student in African Studies, said that while the lines were mostly in African languages, she could still understand the story's meaning.\n"I think you can understand the emotions through the facial expressions," Whitehead said.\nFreshman Meg Hathaway said she was happy she had the chance to attend the presentation.\n"I thought it was a wonderful opportunity to get a window into a different culture," Hathaway said.\nAlthough UNAM Choir members have sung all over the world, including trips to Scotland, Germany and South Africa, where they won a prestigious contest, none of them are performing arts majors, Strydom said. During a question and answer session after the play, the students listed their majors, which included accounting, business administration, computer science, mathematics, biology and several others.\nThe UNAM choir has a total of about 70 members, however a smaller group of about 20 came on this tour because of the prohibitive cost of airplane tickets from Namibia to the U.S., Strydom said.\n"The tickets cost what could be a year's salary for some people," Strydom said.\n-- Contact staff writer Melissa \nHarrold at mejharro@indiana.edu.
(09/27/04 4:21am)
The University of Namibia Choir will visit IU classes and give a performance this week as part of their first-ever American tour. The performance will take place from 7:30 p.m to 8:30 p.m., in the Grand Hall of the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center. The choir, with conductor Bonnie Pereko, will visit Yale University, Rutgers University and IU as part of a tour sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, said Shawn Reynolds of the IU International Resource Center.\nThe choir was created in 1997, according to a press release. Members sing traditional four-voice a capella, occasionally accompanied by drums or a small band. The choir's repertoire consists of religious, concert, traditional, and folk music, according to the release. They sing in all Namibian languages -- six African and three European (German, English, and Afrikaans).\nReynolds said IU has an ongoing relationship with the University of Namibia (UNAM), through which faculty and administrators are exchanged to help shape UNAM's administration and other aspects of the University. However, this will be the first time students have visited either university, \nTwo IU choirs will take advantage of the opportunity to meet with the choir members. Monday afternoon, the UNAM choir will teach some of their songs to the International Vocal Ensemble, a choir directed by Mary Goetze, that recreates music from outside the Western tradition. Goetze said the public is welcome to attend this class meeting, which will take place from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Monday in Sweeney Hall, Room MU015 in the Simon Center. Afterward, choir members will answer questions and talk to those in attendance.\n"We're looking very forward to interacting with (the choir) on a personal level," Goetze said.\nThe UNAM Choir will also visit the African American Choral Ensemble, directed by James Mumford, Tuesday.\nMumford said he believes this will be an opportunity for his students to hear African music fused with the Western tradition, which came from the European influences that reached Namibia in the last few centuries.\nLocated in southwestern Africa, Namibia was annexed by Germany in the late 19th century, and remained under German rule until the end of World War I, when the League of Nations transferred leadership of Namibia to South Africa. Namibia received further European influence from missionaries who taught the people to sing in harmonies in the Western tradition, Goetze said.\nMumford said he believes the UNAM choir will show a mix of both indigenous African music and European influence.\n"They will probably sing gospel or spirituals, but of course their singing styles are different from the way that African-Americans do it in this country," Mumford said. "But, it's still indicative of African influence. (My students) will be able to see things from the African-American style that derive from the way the Africans sing," \nThe choir, which mainly sings four-voice pieces a capella, or without instrumental accompaniment, will greet the public Monday after the show. Audience members will have the opportunity to meet with choir members, who will answer questions about their music, their country and various other topics.\n"It's an opportunity for people of different cultures to learn about each other through their music," Mumford said.\nBoth Mumford and Goetze expressed enthusiasm about the show.\n"I just think it will be a treat for everyone to hear the group," Goetze said.\nFor more information about the event contact The Indiana University Honors College at 855-3555. \n-- Contact Staff writer Melissa Harrold at By Melissa Harrold \nIndiana Daily Student \nThe University of Namibia Choir will visit IU classes and give a performance this week as part of their first-ever American tour. The performance will take place from 7:30 p.m to 8:30 p.m., in the Grand Hall of the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center. The choir, with conductor Bonnie Pereko, will visit Yale University, Rutgers University and IU as part of a tour sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, said Shawn Reynolds of the IU International Resource Center.\nThe choir was created in 1997, according to a press release. Members sing traditional four-voice a capella, occasionally accompanied by drums or a small band. The choir's repertoire consists of religious, concert, traditional, and folk music, according to the release. They sing in all Namibian languages -- six African and three European (German, English, and Afrikaans).\nReynolds said IU has an ongoing relationship with the University of Namibia (UNAM), through which faculty and administrators are exchanged to help shape UNAM's administration and other aspects of the University. However, this will be the first time students have visited either university, \nTwo IU choirs will take advantage of the opportunity to meet with the choir members. Monday afternoon, the UNAM choir will teach some of their songs to the International Vocal Ensemble, a choir directed by Mary Goetze, that recreates music from outside the Western tradition. Goetze said the public is welcome to attend this class meeting, which will take place from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Monday in Sweeney Hall, Room MU015 in the Simon Center. Afterward, choir members will answer questions and talk to those in attendance.\n"We're looking very forward to interacting with (the choir) on a personal level," Goetze said.\nThe UNAM Choir will also visit the African American Choral Ensemble, directed by James Mumford, Tuesday.\nMumford said he believes this will be an opportunity for his students to hear African music fused with the Western tradition, which came from the European influences that reached Namibia in the last few centuries.\nLocated in southwestern Africa, Namibia was annexed by Germany in the late 19th century, and remained under German rule until the end of World War I, when the League of Nations transferred leadership of Namibia to South Africa. Namibia received further European influence from missionaries who taught the people to sing in harmonies in the Western tradition, Goetze said.\nMumford said he believes the UNAM choir will show a mix of both indigenous African music and European influence.\n"They will probably sing gospel or spirituals, but of course their singing styles are different from the way that African-Americans do it in this country," Mumford said. "But, it's still indicative of African influence. (My students) will be able to see things from the African-American style that derive from the way the Africans sing," \nThe choir, which mainly sings four-voice pieces a capella, or without instrumental accompaniment, will greet the public Monday after the show. Audience members will have the opportunity to meet with choir members, who will answer questions about their music, their country and various other topics.\n"It's an opportunity for people of different cultures to learn about each other through their music," Mumford said.\nBoth Mumford and Goetze expressed enthusiasm about the show.\n"I just think it will be a treat for everyone to hear the group," Goetze said.\nFor more information about the event contact The Indiana University Honors College at 855-3555. \n-- Contact Staff writer Melissa Harrold at By Melissa Harrold \nIndiana Daily Student \nThe University of Namibia Choir will visit IU classes and give a performance this week as part of their first-ever American tour. The performance will take place from 7:30 p.m to 8:30 p.m., in the Grand Hall of the Neal-Marshall Black Culture Center. The choir, with conductor Bonnie Pereko, will visit Yale University, Rutgers University and IU as part of a tour sponsored by the U.S. Department of State, said Shawn Reynolds of the IU International Resource Center.\nThe choir was created in 1997, according to a press release. Members sing traditional four-voice a capella, occasionally accompanied by drums or a small band. The choir's repertoire consists of religious, concert, traditional, and folk music, according to the release. They sing in all Namibian languages -- six African and three European (German, English, and Afrikaans).\nReynolds said IU has an ongoing relationship with the University of Namibia (UNAM), through which faculty and administrators are exchanged to help shape UNAM's administration and other aspects of the University. However, this will be the first time students have visited either university, \nTwo IU choirs will take advantage of the opportunity to meet with the choir members. Monday afternoon, the UNAM choir will teach some of their songs to the International Vocal Ensemble, a choir directed by Mary Goetze, that recreates music from outside the Western tradition. Goetze said the public is welcome to attend this class meeting, which will take place from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Monday in Sweeney Hall, Room MU015 in the Simon Center. Afterward, choir members will answer questions and talk to those in attendance.\n"We're looking very forward to interacting with (the choir) on a personal level," Goetze said.\nThe UNAM Choir will also visit the African American Choral Ensemble, directed by James Mumford, Tuesday.\nMumford said he believes this will be an opportunity for his students to hear African music fused with the Western tradition, which came from the European influences that reached Namibia in the last few centuries.\nLocated in southwestern Africa, Namibia was annexed by Germany in the late 19th century, and remained under German rule until the end of World War I, when the League of Nations transferred leadership of Namibia to South Africa. Namibia received further European influence from missionaries who taught the people to sing in harmonies in the Western tradition, Goetze said.\nMumford said he believes the UNAM choir will show a mix of both indigenous African music and European influence.\n"They will probably sing gospel or spirituals, but of course their singing styles are different from the way that African-Americans do it in this country," Mumford said. "But, it's still indicative of African influence. (My students) will be able to see things from the African-American style that derive from the way the Africans sing," \nThe choir, which mainly sings four-voice pieces a capella, or without instrumental accompaniment, will greet the public Monday after the show. Audience members will have the opportunity to meet with choir members, who will answer questions about their music, their country and various other topics.\n"It's an opportunity for people of different cultures to learn about each other through their music," Mumford said.\nBoth Mumford and Goetze expressed enthusiasm about the show.\n"I just think it will be a treat for everyone to hear the group," Goetze said.\nFor more information about the event contact The Indiana University Honors College at 855-3555. \n-- Contact Staff writer Melissa Harrold at mejharro@indiana.edu.
(09/20/04 4:02am)
Saturday night, the Whirling Dervishes of Rumi performed the revolving Sema ritual to a packed house at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater as part of the Lotus Festival, the international music festival that drew a numerous spectators and world renowned artists to Bloomington this weekend.\nThe audience filed into the theater and filled nearly every seat after lining up around the block and down Walnut Street for half an hour before the show. The stage was set for the initial part of a ritual that has been performed in much the same way since its inception more than 700 years ago by a Turkish poet and scholar named Mevlana Jalaluddin Rumi.\nAfter being introduced by Bloomington Muslim Dialog Group president Ali Korkmaz, nine semazen, or dervishes, took the stage.\nPlayed on traditional Turkish instruments, the ritual began with mood-setting notes from the ud, an 11-string guitar-like instrument. This melodic, haunting music was soon joined by the low, deep tones of the ney, a Turkish reed flute, other instruments and the voices of several of the semazen. \n"I don't know much about what they were singing about, but it was coming from the soul," Bloomington resident Trudy Kaufman said.\nThe song lasted several minutes, with solos from the ney, ud and singers. \n"It was really eerie, the warbling and the way they would attenuate the notes at the end," Clint Wolfe of Evansville, said.\nAt the songs climax, one of the semazen sang, in heartfelt tones, a highly varied and complex melody.\n"It is really neat how you can hear the cyclical form of the music," senior Molly Mitchell said.\nAfter an intermission, the nine musicians returned to the stage accompanied by five dancers. In this second part of the ritual, all 14 men wore tall, cylindrical hats. According to the pamphlet distributed at the door, written by Dr. Celalettin Celebi, this "camel's hair hat (sikke) represents the tombstone of the ego." \nThe "cyclical" music began again, and the five dancers stood and removed their black cloaks, an action that represents their spiritual rebirth to the truth, according to the pamphlet. \nAs they began their spinning dance, the semazen's white skirts, representing the ego's shroud, billowed around them. \n"While whirling, (the semazen's) arms are open: his right arm is directed to the sky, ready to receive God's beneficence; his left hand, upon which his eyes are fastened, is turned toward the earth," Celebi's pamphlet read.\nEach dancer's white costume turned red, pink, green or yellow as he revolved under the stage's colored lights.\n"The flowing of the robes was circular, as it billowed out. They were almost like flowers," Bloomington resident Julia Karr said.\nAt the conclusion of their deliberate, precise whirling and the musicians' spinning, lilting melodies, the dancers resumed their dark cloaks and bowed, thus ending the ritual. \nWolfe said that the presentation was not what he anticipated\n"I guess I expected it to be more high-energy than that. It was pretty low-key," Wolfe said.\nAlthough the performance may not have been what some members of the Bloomington audience expected, Kaufman said she enjoyed it.\n"It was hypnotic, entrancing; beautiful, just beautiful," Kaufman said.\n-- Contact staff writer Melissa Harrold at mejharro@indiana.edu.
(09/17/04 5:18am)
This weekend the Lotus Festival will present a mix of entertainment and spirituality. The Whirling Dervishes of Rumi will whirl Bloomington at 7 p.m. Saturday at the Buskirk-Chumley Theater. \nThe Dervishes are being brought to town by the Bloomington Muslim Dialog Group, an organization of Muslim individuals who wish to spread understanding and respect among people of all faiths. The BMDG also teamed up with the Niagara Foundation, a Chicago-based organization that pursues similar goals, and the Lotus Festival to bring the Whirling Dervishes of Rumi to Bloomington, BMDG President Ali Korkmaz said. \nAccording to information provided by the BMDG and the Niagara Foundation, whirling dervishes perform a 700-year-old ritual called "Sema," involving traditional music, dance and costumes. A Turkish poet and teacher named Mevlana Jalaluddin al-Rumi, known simply as Rumi, began the practice that has been observed in much the same way throughout the centuries. \nThe Whirling Dervishes' Web site explained that, "by revolving in harmony with all things in nature, the semazen testifies to the existence and the majesty of the Creator, thinks of Him, gives thanks to Him and prays to Him."\nHakan Berberoglu, a Turkish Musician, explained that this revolving ritual is comprised of two parts. During the first section of the performance, the Dervishes perform what Berberoglu called "interesting, mesmerizing" music on traditional Turkish instruments. Then, during the Sema ceremony, five dervishes come to the stage to perform the movements that comprise the spiritual worship, Berberoglu said. Each aspect of the show, including the costumes, music and minute details of movement, has a specific meaning, Korkmaz said.\nKorkmaz said that people do not have to know all of the intricate details before coming to the show. An informative pamphlet will be distributed at the door, and the first 500 people will receive a DVD describing the life of Rumi and the history of the Sema ritual, Korkmaz said. \nWhether audience members' curiosity or the reputation of the Whirling Dervishes prompts them to attend the show, Lotus Festival Director Lee Williams said he believes the performance will have a wide appeal.\n"They're well known. If you ask somebody what a whirling dervish is, even if they've never been out of the country, they'll have an image of the men with the hats and the costumes," Williams said.\nWhile the practitioners of the Sema ritual are traditionally followers of Islam, Berberoglu said the ritual is more a spiritual than a religious practice and embraces all faiths.\n"This is beyond being a Muslim. (The dancers) will always be Muslim and practice the five pillars of Islam. But this is beyond religion. They are trying to be closer to God. It doesn't matter what they are. They can be Christian, Jewish, whatever," Berberoglu said.\nKorkmaz, too, emphasized the universal appeal of the Whirling Dervishes of Rumi.\n"Everybody thinks about how to achieve inner peace and get closer to God. Everybody sees it from a different perspective," Korkmaz said.\nFor further information, visit The Bloomington Muslim Dialog Group at http://www.bmdg.org , the Lotus Festival at http://www.lotusfest.org or The Whirling Dervishes of Rumi at http://www.sufinight.com.\n-- Contact staff writer Melissa Harrold at mejharro@indiana.edu.
(09/16/04 4:00am)
They've been out of the game for a while, but '80s synth-pop group Tears for Fears have broken out of their hiatus with an album that's as "sweet as homemade apple pie," as they call one song in their liner notes.\nEverybody Loves A Happy Ending, the first effort from English duo Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith since 1996, is a pleasure to listen to. While every band to come out of Britain since the mid-1960s has probably been compared to the Beatles in some way, this complex, artsy album has distinct echoes of the Fab Four's work. For example, the alarm clock sounds, vocal timbre, harmonies and lyrics of the album-opening title track bring to mind Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band songs, "A Day in the Life" and possibly "Good Morning, Good Morning." \nBeyond these surface Beatles resemblances, however, is an evolved album full of textured, artsy songs that will make you tap your toe and sing under your breath, even the first time you hear them. \nIn their first album of the new millennium, Tears for Fears has shown they can still produce songs to stick in your head all day, like their '80s hits "Shout" and "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" once did. Standout tracks on Everybody Loves A Happy Ending include "Closest Thing To Heaven," "Killing With Kindness" and "Who Killed Tangerine"
(09/15/04 4:49pm)
They've been out of the game for a while, but '80s synth-pop group Tears for Fears have broken out of their hiatus with an album that's as "sweet as homemade apple pie," as they call one song in their liner notes.\nEverybody Loves A Happy Ending, the first effort from English duo Roland Orzabal and Curt Smith since 1996, is a pleasure to listen to. While every band to come out of Britain since the mid-1960s has probably been compared to the Beatles in some way, this complex, artsy album has distinct echoes of the Fab Four's work. For example, the alarm clock sounds, vocal timbre, harmonies and lyrics of the album-opening title track bring to mind Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band songs, "A Day in the Life" and possibly "Good Morning, Good Morning." \nBeyond these surface Beatles resemblances, however, is an evolved album full of textured, artsy songs that will make you tap your toe and sing under your breath, even the first time you hear them. \nIn their first album of the new millennium, Tears for Fears has shown they can still produce songs to stick in your head all day, like their '80s hits "Shout" and "Everybody Wants To Rule The World" once did. Standout tracks on Everybody Loves A Happy Ending include "Closest Thing To Heaven," "Killing With Kindness" and "Who Killed Tangerine"
(04/08/04 5:01am)
Blonde Redhead have succeeded in creating another collection of moody, somber tunes on their newest album, Misery Is a Butterfly. This most recent effort suggests an artistic step forward for the band, from their previous minimalism to Misery Is a Butterfly's more complex arrangements.\nBlonde Redhead is Kazu Makino (vocals/guitar) and Italian twin brothers Amedeo (vocals/guitar) and Simone Pace (drums). On Misery, they create a somewhat mellowed alternation between delicate, pained vocals and loud, angry songs than was apparent on their last album, Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons. \nWhile the band's previous music could be called arty or melancholy as well, the instrumentation and arrangements of Misery, such as the synthesizers on "Elephant Woman," take it to a new level of artistry. Highlights include "Falling Man," "Maddening Cloud" and "Magic Mountain," in addition to the title track.\nWhile some might find the vocals whiny or grating, on this album Kazu and Amadeo's voices work beautifully with the exquisite arrangements and synthesizers to create a haunting, sweetly melancholic mood.\nIf you have never been exposed to Blonde Redhead, Misery Is a Butterfly is a good place to start in this eccentric band's catalogue.
(04/08/04 4:00am)
Blonde Redhead have succeeded in creating another collection of moody, somber tunes on their newest album, Misery Is a Butterfly. This most recent effort suggests an artistic step forward for the band, from their previous minimalism to Misery Is a Butterfly's more complex arrangements.\nBlonde Redhead is Kazu Makino (vocals/guitar) and Italian twin brothers Amedeo (vocals/guitar) and Simone Pace (drums). On Misery, they create a somewhat mellowed alternation between delicate, pained vocals and loud, angry songs than was apparent on their last album, Melody of Certain Damaged Lemons. \nWhile the band's previous music could be called arty or melancholy as well, the instrumentation and arrangements of Misery, such as the synthesizers on "Elephant Woman," take it to a new level of artistry. Highlights include "Falling Man," "Maddening Cloud" and "Magic Mountain," in addition to the title track.\nWhile some might find the vocals whiny or grating, on this album Kazu and Amadeo's voices work beautifully with the exquisite arrangements and synthesizers to create a haunting, sweetly melancholic mood.\nIf you have never been exposed to Blonde Redhead, Misery Is a Butterfly is a good place to start in this eccentric band's catalogue.
(02/12/04 5:00am)
Nominated for four Academy Awards and winner of the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy), Best Actor (Musical or Comedy) and Best Screenplay, "Lost in Translation" has generated a lot of buzz lately, and it does not disappoint. \nThis bittersweet film details the relationship between Bob Harris (a quintessentially comical yet world-weary Bill Murray) and Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), as they each battle jetlag-motivated sleeplessness in an upscale Tokyo hotel. Bob, a middle-aged movie star, is in Tokyo half-heartedly shooting whiskey endorsements. Charlotte spends her days and evenings confined in the hotel room, while her hotshot photographer husband (Giovanni Ribisi) spends every waking moment working. Lonely and bored, Bob and Charlotte find companionship in each other. Their relationship poignantly portrays the instant and intense intimacy that develops between lonely travelers in a strange country who will never meet again in their ordinary lives.\nMurray basically makes the film with his performance. He brings a perfect mix of humor and sadness to his role, making him thoroughly endearing as an aging action star singing karaoke in an orange camouflage t-shirt.\n"Lost in Translation" is aesthetically beautiful, with lush garden scenes sharply contrasting cityscapes emphasizing Bob and Charlotte's loneliness. Many of the most memorable scenes, however, come from the characters' exploration of Tokyo, from karaoke bars to arcades.\nSpecial features on the DVD include a home video-like behind-the-scenes documentary (made very entertaining by Murray's antics), an interview with Murray and Coppola, a music video and some deleted scenes, including Bob Harris' extended appearance on a wacky Japanese talk show. If you missed it in theaters, the "Lost in Translation" DVD is well worth checking out.
(02/11/04 9:03pm)
Nominated for four Academy Awards and winner of the Golden Globe for Best Motion Picture (Musical or Comedy), Best Actor (Musical or Comedy) and Best Screenplay, "Lost in Translation" has generated a lot of buzz lately, and it does not disappoint. \nThis bittersweet film details the relationship between Bob Harris (a quintessentially comical yet world-weary Bill Murray) and Charlotte (Scarlett Johansson), as they each battle jetlag-motivated sleeplessness in an upscale Tokyo hotel. Bob, a middle-aged movie star, is in Tokyo half-heartedly shooting whiskey endorsements. Charlotte spends her days and evenings confined in the hotel room, while her hotshot photographer husband (Giovanni Ribisi) spends every waking moment working. Lonely and bored, Bob and Charlotte find companionship in each other. Their relationship poignantly portrays the instant and intense intimacy that develops between lonely travelers in a strange country who will never meet again in their ordinary lives.\nMurray basically makes the film with his performance. He brings a perfect mix of humor and sadness to his role, making him thoroughly endearing as an aging action star singing karaoke in an orange camouflage t-shirt.\n"Lost in Translation" is aesthetically beautiful, with lush garden scenes sharply contrasting cityscapes emphasizing Bob and Charlotte's loneliness. Many of the most memorable scenes, however, come from the characters' exploration of Tokyo, from karaoke bars to arcades.\nSpecial features on the DVD include a home video-like behind-the-scenes documentary (made very entertaining by Murray's antics), an interview with Murray and Coppola, a music video and some deleted scenes, including Bob Harris' extended appearance on a wacky Japanese talk show. If you missed it in theaters, the "Lost in Translation" DVD is well worth checking out.
(01/23/04 9:00am)
Intricately woven and imaginative, Edward Bloom's stories are of questionable truth. Through them, Edward (Albert Finney) has created a mythology of his past, which he shares with his family, friends and anyone who will listen. As his health deteriorates, Edward's son Will (Billy Crudup) attempts to disentangle his father's fabrications to discover the reality beneath. \nWith Big Fish, based on a novel by Daniel Wallace, director Tim Burton creates the breathtaking scenes of Edward's stories, presenting us with the distinctive characters and events of his life. True to form, Burton's scenes are each visually impressive, making the film beautiful to look at in addition to its star-studded cast and intriguing plot.\nScottish actor Ewan McGregor, complete with a believable Southern accent, lends his magnetism and charisma to the role of the young Edward Bloom, protagonist of the mystical tales. McGregor's innocent, boyish charm makes him the perfect hero: a hopeless romantic, a fearless wanderer and a man who is always in the right place at the right time (or a little early). Whether the tales are fact or fiction, you want to root for him either way.\nEdward's narratives are peopled with colorful characters, from a giant (Matthew McGrory), to a wheeling and dealing circus manager (Danny DeVito) to a barefooted poet (Steve Buscemi). Jessica Lange and Helena Bonham-Carter also appear in supporting roles as the women in Edward's life. Each of these characters lends color to the fabric of Edward's tall tales.\nBeyond the colorful stories, however, this movie is at its most basic level about Will's quest to understand his father's true nature. Finney is striking and charming as the elder Edward, and plays well against Crudup's solid performance as the more level-headed Will. The narrative deftly weaves between the past and present, making the story easy to follow, even in its complexity.\nThis film brilliantly explores the fundamentals of human relationships by attempting to answer the following questions: Who is Edward Bloom, really? Is there an absolute truth beneath his embellished tales of the past? Does it really matter? \nA tall tale and its opposite -- the most grounded of stories -- Big Fish's appeal lies in the human desire to believe the unbelievable. Whether you are skeptical or gullible, this film is a touching family story, with stellar performances, fairytale sensibilities and sensible reality. It's an enjoyable and wondrous journey into one man's vivid imagination and relationships.
(01/15/04 5:00am)
Intricately woven and imaginative, Edward Bloom's stories are of questionable truth. Through them, Edward (Albert Finney) has created a mythology of his past, which he shares with his family, friends and anyone who will listen. As his health deteriorates, Edward's son Will (Billy Crudup) attempts to disentangle his father's fabrications to discover the reality beneath. \nWith Big Fish, based on a novel by Daniel Wallace, director Tim Burton creates the breathtaking scenes of Edward's stories, presenting us with the distinctive characters and events of his life. True to form, Burton's scenes are each visually impressive, making the film beautiful to look at in addition to its star-studded cast and intriguing plot.\nScottish actor Ewan McGregor, complete with a believable Southern accent, lends his magnetism and charisma to the role of the young Edward Bloom, protagonist of the mystical tales. McGregor's innocent, boyish charm makes him the perfect hero: a hopeless romantic, a fearless wanderer and a man who is always in the right place at the right time (or a little early). Whether the tales are fact or fiction, you want to root for him either way.\nEdward's narratives are peopled with colorful characters, from a giant (Matthew McGrory), to a wheeling and dealing circus manager (Danny DeVito) to a barefooted poet (Steve Buscemi). Jessica Lange and Helena Bonham-Carter also appear in supporting roles as the women in Edward's life. Each of these characters lends color to the fabric of Edward's tall tales.\nBeyond the colorful stories, however, this movie is at its most basic level about Will's quest to understand his father's true nature. Finney is striking and charming as the elder Edward, and plays well against Crudup's solid performance as the more level-headed Will. The narrative deftly weaves between the past and present, making the story easy to follow, even in its complexity.\nThis film brilliantly explores the fundamentals of human relationships by attempting to answer the following questions: Who is Edward Bloom, really? Is there an absolute truth beneath his embellished tales of the past? Does it really matter? \nA tall tale and its opposite -- the most grounded of stories -- Big Fish's appeal lies in the human desire to believe the unbelievable. Whether you are skeptical or gullible, this film is a touching family story, with stellar performances, fairytale sensibilities and sensible reality. It's an enjoyable and wondrous journey into one man's vivid imagination and relationships.
(12/11/03 5:00am)
If you haven't heard of Rocket from the Tombs, you might know the two punk bands that its members went on to form: Pere Ubu and The Dead Boys. While RFTT lived and died in mid-'70s Cleveland before anyone had heard of The Ramones, their intense guitar-driven rock is generally considered a major influence on later punk bands.\nThe Dec. 1 show at the Bluebird was perhaps not what punk fans regaled with myths of mid-'70s pre-punk legends Rocket from the Tombs would expect. \nWithout ceremony or introduction, a large, bearded man wearing a mauve jacket and an aloof air took his place at the center microphone. This was David Thomas, formerly known in the Cleveland pre-punk scene as Crocus Behemoth. \nWhile no one would expect a screaming, moshing, out-of-control performance at a RFTT concert, this show was perhaps even more laid-back than anticipated. Thomas did not provide much showmanship, speaking little and sitting on a chair at center stage between his singing parts, resting his hands on a cane, his eyes closed.\nBut fans did not need witty between-songs banter or theatrics to be enthusiastic about this show. What Thomas and the rest of RFTT did provide was solid, straight-to-the-chase rock and roll. \nAlthough the crowd was small at no more than around 80 people, it was apparent every person at the Bluebird that night had long anticipated this reunion tour. A few danced at the front of the stage, punching their fists into the air during choruses. Most, however, stood and enjoyed hearing the pre-punk legends' songs live for the first time.\nAccompanying Thomas' tenor vocals were original RFTT guitarist Cheetah Chrome (Gene O'Connor) and bassist Craig Bell, who also switched off on vocals. The void left by late members Peter Laughner and John Madansky was filled by the unhinged solos of Television guitarist Richard Lloyd and chest-rattling drumming from Pere Ubu's Steve Mehlman.\nThis new incarnation of Rocket from the Tombs is touring in support of the first official album release of their only studio recordings, Rocket Redux, due early next year. Before this new project, the world could only hear RFTT on bootleg demos and two rare compilations of demos and radio broadcasts. \nWith the inclusion of RFTT songs later released by Pere Ubu as well as tracks previously available only as bootlegs, Monday night's show was a rare treat for '70s rock aficionados and new fans alike.
(12/10/03 10:25pm)
If you haven't heard of Rocket from the Tombs, you might know the two punk bands that its members went on to form: Pere Ubu and The Dead Boys. While RFTT lived and died in mid-'70s Cleveland before anyone had heard of The Ramones, their intense guitar-driven rock is generally considered a major influence on later punk bands.\nThe Dec. 1 show at the Bluebird was perhaps not what punk fans regaled with myths of mid-'70s pre-punk legends Rocket from the Tombs would expect. \nWithout ceremony or introduction, a large, bearded man wearing a mauve jacket and an aloof air took his place at the center microphone. This was David Thomas, formerly known in the Cleveland pre-punk scene as Crocus Behemoth. \nWhile no one would expect a screaming, moshing, out-of-control performance at a RFTT concert, this show was perhaps even more laid-back than anticipated. Thomas did not provide much showmanship, speaking little and sitting on a chair at center stage between his singing parts, resting his hands on a cane, his eyes closed.\nBut fans did not need witty between-songs banter or theatrics to be enthusiastic about this show. What Thomas and the rest of RFTT did provide was solid, straight-to-the-chase rock and roll. \nAlthough the crowd was small at no more than around 80 people, it was apparent every person at the Bluebird that night had long anticipated this reunion tour. A few danced at the front of the stage, punching their fists into the air during choruses. Most, however, stood and enjoyed hearing the pre-punk legends' songs live for the first time.\nAccompanying Thomas' tenor vocals were original RFTT guitarist Cheetah Chrome (Gene O'Connor) and bassist Craig Bell, who also switched off on vocals. The void left by late members Peter Laughner and John Madansky was filled by the unhinged solos of Television guitarist Richard Lloyd and chest-rattling drumming from Pere Ubu's Steve Mehlman.\nThis new incarnation of Rocket from the Tombs is touring in support of the first official album release of their only studio recordings, Rocket Redux, due early next year. Before this new project, the world could only hear RFTT on bootleg demos and two rare compilations of demos and radio broadcasts. \nWith the inclusion of RFTT songs later released by Pere Ubu as well as tracks previously available only as bootlegs, Monday night's show was a rare treat for '70s rock aficionados and new fans alike.
(12/04/03 5:00am)
A perfectly tanned, blonde ex-pro-football cheerleader strolls gracefully down a beach in slow-motion, her hair tousled in the sea breeze and her skimpy bathing suit accentuating her toned body. \nThe rest of the commercial goes on to explain that this dazzling beauty, Melana Scantlin, is the unwitting star of NBC's newest reality dating travesty, "Average Joe." This beauty expects to meet her Prince Charming; instead, NBC has set her up to meet the beast.\nThe potential Princes Charming on this dating show are unconventional heroes in this salacious world of television hook-ups. They are not exorbitantly rich. They are not conventionally handsome. They are not stylish. They are, however, bald and overweight. They are "average Joes." \nThrough this newest incarnation of a favorite limb of the reality television monster, pioneered by "The Bachelor" and particularly "Joe Millionaire," NBC suggests it is out to prove even the average guys deserve to get the sexy women once in a while. Beauty is only skin deep; what's on the inside matters most. And anyone who suggests otherwise is vain or shallow.\nThese are all valid sentiments, but "Average Joe" is far from proving them. The advertisements for "Average Joe" are a case in point. They seem to suggest this beautiful woman will have to realize the inner beauty of the men from whom she must divine her soul mate. All the while, the commercials exploit Melana's physical allure in the suggestive Baywatch-esque shots of the bikini-clad beauty walking on the beach.\nNo matter what the outcome of the show, Melana will come out looking shallow for eliminating the less attractive candidates. The hard fact is, however, that to choose a potential partner based, in part, on a level of physical attraction is not shallow. Attraction is a vital component to any romantic relationship, and to ignore this basic human instinct is narrow-minded. \nInner beauty is vastly important, and no matter how attractive someone is initially, perceived outer beauty can fade or augment based on personality and character. However, it is unfair to judge Melana for eliminating those "Joes" to whom she knows she can never be attracted. It is not shallow; it is human nature.\n"Average Joe's" inherent hypocrisy lies in the fact it touts Melana's outer beauty while emphasizing the inner beauty of the potential dates. The fundamental problem with the entire premise is its seeming support of the accepted image of the perfect female. Women must be physically beautiful above all things: above intelligence, above integrity and above personality. The latter traits are, of course, appreciated when present, but only in combination with the requisite beauty. \nThe television sitcom "The King of Queens" provides a good example. Kevin James plays the husband, delivery man Doug Hefferman, a decidedly "average Joe." His wife, played by Leah Remini, is both beautiful and brainy, a "spitfire legal secretary," as the Sony Pictures "King of Queens" Web site describes her. Several episodes revolve around Doug's career troubles and his wife's love for her kind and honest husband, despite his economic failures.\nSuch a situation is a television standard, and NBC has exploited it yet again with "Average Joe." My question is this, however: Why are there no "Average Jane" reality dating shows or sitcoms? If people are supposed to be so selflessly focused on inner beauty, why do men have the honor of being the sole possessors of this admirable attribute?\nIt seems almost ludicrous to think of such a scenario. Let us put 15 middle-aged, overweight, average women on a reality dating show. Let them vie for the affections of a male model or ex-football player. And let us ask ourselves why this suggestion sounds ludicrous when we see television women to do the very same thing every day in reverse.\nThe fact is, people like to watch beautiful people on television. And reality dating shows would not be popular if both the bachelor or bachelorette and the contestants were not easy on the eyes. The presence of Melana's beauty on this show is understandable, but why aren't we talking about her inner beauty, too? \nThe average television viewer gets to experience a world full of average Joes and Janes every day in the real world. Both men and women must look for others' inner and outer beauty in our own quests for love every day. The makers of reality television must realize that they are not portraying "reality" on staged dating shows featuring alpha males and females vying for each other's attention. They are simply selling unrealistic expectations to the real average Joes and Janes.
(12/03/03 10:36pm)
A perfectly tanned, blonde ex-pro-football cheerleader strolls gracefully down a beach in slow-motion, her hair tousled in the sea breeze and her skimpy bathing suit accentuating her toned body. \nThe rest of the commercial goes on to explain that this dazzling beauty, Melana Scantlin, is the unwitting star of NBC's newest reality dating travesty, "Average Joe." This beauty expects to meet her Prince Charming; instead, NBC has set her up to meet the beast.\nThe potential Princes Charming on this dating show are unconventional heroes in this salacious world of television hook-ups. They are not exorbitantly rich. They are not conventionally handsome. They are not stylish. They are, however, bald and overweight. They are "average Joes." \nThrough this newest incarnation of a favorite limb of the reality television monster, pioneered by "The Bachelor" and particularly "Joe Millionaire," NBC suggests it is out to prove even the average guys deserve to get the sexy women once in a while. Beauty is only skin deep; what's on the inside matters most. And anyone who suggests otherwise is vain or shallow.\nThese are all valid sentiments, but "Average Joe" is far from proving them. The advertisements for "Average Joe" are a case in point. They seem to suggest this beautiful woman will have to realize the inner beauty of the men from whom she must divine her soul mate. All the while, the commercials exploit Melana's physical allure in the suggestive Baywatch-esque shots of the bikini-clad beauty walking on the beach.\nNo matter what the outcome of the show, Melana will come out looking shallow for eliminating the less attractive candidates. The hard fact is, however, that to choose a potential partner based, in part, on a level of physical attraction is not shallow. Attraction is a vital component to any romantic relationship, and to ignore this basic human instinct is narrow-minded. \nInner beauty is vastly important, and no matter how attractive someone is initially, perceived outer beauty can fade or augment based on personality and character. However, it is unfair to judge Melana for eliminating those "Joes" to whom she knows she can never be attracted. It is not shallow; it is human nature.\n"Average Joe's" inherent hypocrisy lies in the fact it touts Melana's outer beauty while emphasizing the inner beauty of the potential dates. The fundamental problem with the entire premise is its seeming support of the accepted image of the perfect female. Women must be physically beautiful above all things: above intelligence, above integrity and above personality. The latter traits are, of course, appreciated when present, but only in combination with the requisite beauty. \nThe television sitcom "The King of Queens" provides a good example. Kevin James plays the husband, delivery man Doug Hefferman, a decidedly "average Joe." His wife, played by Leah Remini, is both beautiful and brainy, a "spitfire legal secretary," as the Sony Pictures "King of Queens" Web site describes her. Several episodes revolve around Doug's career troubles and his wife's love for her kind and honest husband, despite his economic failures.\nSuch a situation is a television standard, and NBC has exploited it yet again with "Average Joe." My question is this, however: Why are there no "Average Jane" reality dating shows or sitcoms? If people are supposed to be so selflessly focused on inner beauty, why do men have the honor of being the sole possessors of this admirable attribute?\nIt seems almost ludicrous to think of such a scenario. Let us put 15 middle-aged, overweight, average women on a reality dating show. Let them vie for the affections of a male model or ex-football player. And let us ask ourselves why this suggestion sounds ludicrous when we see television women to do the very same thing every day in reverse.\nThe fact is, people like to watch beautiful people on television. And reality dating shows would not be popular if both the bachelor or bachelorette and the contestants were not easy on the eyes. The presence of Melana's beauty on this show is understandable, but why aren't we talking about her inner beauty, too? \nThe average television viewer gets to experience a world full of average Joes and Janes every day in the real world. Both men and women must look for others' inner and outer beauty in our own quests for love every day. The makers of reality television must realize that they are not portraying "reality" on staged dating shows featuring alpha males and females vying for each other's attention. They are simply selling unrealistic expectations to the real average Joes and Janes.
(10/30/03 5:00am)
The last few years have been rough on national punk rock, with the deaths of Joey and Dee Dee Ramone of the Ramones and Clash front man Joe Strummer. Punk rock is usually associated with electric guitars with lots of energy and lyrics filled with teenaged angst. The original punk bands were made of the first musicians to express anger in their music, IU music professor Andy Hollinden says. \nPunk has existed since the '60s garage-punk predecessors, such as the MC5, The Stooges and the Monks, becoming widely known through the mid-'70s punk revolution of the Ramones and the Sex Pistols. The music went underground with the hardcore of the '80s, touring America's basements and small venues, helping to spawn indie rock movements, says Hollinden, who teaches History of Rock and Roll.\nIn the '90s, punk revived, breaking into the forefront of rock consciousness with the grunge movement and the resurrection of mainstream pop-punk in bands like Green Day. \nOver the decades, punk has split into hybrid forms, such as hardcore, pop-punk, ska-punk, post-punk and several others still popular today.\nBut the deaths of some of punk's founding fathers, interlaced with the splintering of punk into subgenres can leave some wondering: Is punk itself dead?\nSeveral Bloomington residents and students would say no.\n"It ain't even close to dead," Hollinden says.\nIt's the "music of the dispossessed, angry youth," as Hollinden put it. He explains punk's longevity as a result of its ability to express youthful anger. \n"It gives people a voice, a chance to get out there to say what's on their minds," Hollinden says.\nBloomington has been host to a diverse music scene for decades, and punk continues to thrive here despite the closing of several venues in the last few years. The Cellar Lounge closed down in early 2002; Space 101 and Second Story (although recently reopened) each shut their doors within the last couple of years as well. Dave Adicted of local pop-punk band the Nicotones says the closing of Second Story last year was a real downer for the Chuck Talor and safety pinsporting scene.\n"That let a lot of people down. If a punk band came through and they didn't play Rhino's, they played there," Adicted says.\nPossibly the most often-cited of these former venues in terms of the punk scene was Secret Sailor, the alternative bookstore that hosted many free or donation-only punk shows from early 2000 until January 2002. Secret Sailor was a gathering place for people with specific political views, including anti-authoritarian activists, free thinkers, revolutionaries and radicals.\nBloomington punk bands were notorious for rocking the bookstore.\nOne of these bands was the Sissies, who was together from 1998 until the end of 2001, when it played its final show at Secret Sailor. \nFormer Sissies band member and head of local punk label Plan-It-X Records, Chris Clavin, chalks these losses up to simple changes over time in the punk scene. \n"Things always change here, it keeps it interesting," Clavin says. "I do wish we had more venues but they will come back, they always do. Just wait."\nClavin has been involved in the Bloomington punk scene since 1994, playing in several bands which have since broken up, including the Ted Dancin' Machine and Operation: Cliff Clavin in addition to the Sissies. He's currently a member of the Devil is Electric and The Ghose Mice, who are on tour in Europe right now. \nPlan-It-X Records was founded by Sam Dorsett in 1994, and Clavin has been heavily involved with the label since its inception. The Plan-It-X Web site, www.plan-it-x.com, expresses a non-profit policy toward the music business. It reads, "Plan-It-X records is not about making money. We are about getting punk music heard." On the site, Clavin explains that Plan-It-X only charges $5 for each CD it sells, and began by charging only $1 per cassette tape in 1994. \nThis emphasis on a scene that is not heavily profit-driven seems to permeate many accounts of the basement show scene in Bloomington, especially. Even before several of the concert venues closed in the last few years, basement shows have always been an integral part of the Bloomington punk scene. Often, bands will play a show in a friend's basement either free of charge or on a donation-only basis. \n"[Basement shows] are always the most fun," says Adicted, vocalist and guitarist for the Nicotones.\nAdicted says basement shows are more party-ish, and fun to attend with a group of friends. He says the Nicotones, formerly called the Abercrombie Skins, played several shows at a friends' former home, which was then called the Octopus Palace. "They lived there two years, and they did more shows than god," Adicted says.\nThe friendly atmosphere of basement shows might be a little off-putting to people who are not friends with the hosts or the bands, however. Clavin says, "They are intimidating but they are also very fun. I wish kids could get over the intimidating factor. If they could I think they would really enjoy themselves." \nAdicted, too, agrees people should go to shows even if they aren't friends with the band. "We have friends that just come to see us, but you should support your local punk scene," Adicted says.\nRhino's has also become a very important venue for punk bands. Ali Haimson, guitarist for local punk band What the Kids Want and former Sissies band member, emphasizes the importance of having an all-ages venue for punk rock. What the Kids Want only plays all-ages shows. "It's mostly just because all of us, when we were teenagers, we liked to go to shows, and I remember how horrible it is not to be able to go," Haimson says. "Rhino's has become a really awesome place where lots and lots of kids go every weekend."\nRhino's Assistant Director Bob Nugent says the venue hosts around four or five punk shows per month, including both local and national acts. \n"In our lifetime we've had the privilege of having some of the biggest names in punk play here from hardcore punk legends the Bad Brains, the Queers, Earth Crisis and Greg Ginn of Black Flag, to more modern punk acts like Hot Water Music, Alkaline Trio, Tilt, Against Me, The Teen Idols and Thursday."\nAll Rhino's shows cost $5, keeping with the low-cost trend of free or donation-based basement shows. In addition to Rhino's, bands also sometimes play free shows at the on-campus student radio station, WIUS, or at local book stores, Clavin says.\nChristopher Taylor of What the Kids Want says it would also be good for Bloomington to have a venue that "catered to people of all ages, and people who want to drink," in order to have a more inclusive punk scene.
(10/30/03 5:00am)
On Oct. 21, indie folk-rock singer/songwriter Elliott Smith was found dead of a stab wound to the chest in his Los Angeles home. All appearances indicate that it was self-inflicted and intentional.\nPerhaps best known for his Oscar-nominated song "Miss Misery," which appeared on the soundtrack for the 1997 Ben Affleck-Matt Damon film Good Will Hunting, Smith's delicate music and honest lyrics made an indelible impression on anyone who heard them. He was working on his sixth solo album at the time of his death.\nAs violent and horrifying as his end was, fans and friends are not surprised that Smith's tortured life finished tragically. It always seemed a matter of when the fragile artist would submit to the darkness that seemed to permeate his life. Stories abound of his confused and sometimes bizarre actions at his own shows in the last year, from trailing off when speaking between songs to getting into brawls.\nFlaming Lips lead singer Wayne Coyne commented on one incident. "It really was nothing but sad," Coyne told Billboard.com. "You just sort of saw a guy who had lost control of himself." \nMany of his songs dealt with hard realities of Smith's life, namely drug abuse and depression, and his resulting suicidal thoughts. Smith was sometimes expressive about drug use in songs such as "The White Lady Loves You More," from his 1995 self-titled album. Other songs, such as "Everything Means Nothing to Me," expressed Smith's loneliness. \nHe sang, "Someone found the future as a statue in a fountain at/Attention looking backward in a pool of water wishes with/A blue songbird on his shoulder who keeps singing over everything/ Everything means nothing to me." \nThroughout all of his music, there was an underlying sadness, expressed so poignantly and honestly as to touch the heart of any listener and make one wonder at the amount of sadness in this man's soul when so many people seemed to love him. \nWhatever loneliness Smith felt, the outpouring of love from his fans this week proves that Smith was loved and will be greatly missed. Fans held a memorial service at Central Lawn in New York City's Tompkins Square Park on Sunday. In Los Angeles, hundreds of people left notes, photos and other memorabilia outside the Solutions! speaker repair shop on Sunset Boulevard, which appeared in the album cover art for Smith's 2000 release, Figure 8. Smith's official Web site, www.sweetadeline.net, displayed an obituary and tribute letters while the Web sites for Kill Rock Stars, DreamWorks Records and Suicide Squeeze Records, three labels on which Smith's music has appeared, each put his photo on their main pages.\nLuke Wood of DreamWorks Records was quoted on Billboard.com as saying that Smith's life was "a very beautiful and brutal place, and his songs were that ground in between." Many such statements have been made lately as a requiem for Smith's life, but this is perhaps the most apt and precise expression of the man and the artist. On Oct. 21, the brutality of Smith's life overwhelmed the beauty, leaving the world a darker place for his absence.\nIt seems almost in vogue to be a "tortured" artist. Musicians, poets, painters, actors and writers are expected to be intense, irrational, sensitive and lonely, according to the book Media and Society by John Ryan and William M. Wentworth. Sadness seems to go hand in hand with this conception of a lonely, intense artist with suicide becoming romanticized as almost an extension of artistic self-expression. The dramatic suicides of Shakespeare's plays and the harsh reality of the deaths of Vincent Van Gogh, Ernest Hemingway, Virginia Woolf and, in our generation, Kurt Cobain contribute to this ideal of suicide as an expression of disdain for all things worldly by souls too intense for this world.\nSmith's death, like the deaths of these other artists, was far from poetic, however. The man took a knife and buried it within his own heart, an act so ineffably riddled with self-hatred as to be an unmistakably unambiguous, clearly-focused expression of a loathing for his own life and the world so intense that it could only be quenched by piercing it cruelly and decisively. \nThis was no cry for help, no perverted attempt at high art. This was reality at its most brutal. It has left Smith's fans bewildered and lonely, as the outpouring of love has shown this week. Whether he realized it during his lifetime, the talent and poeticism of Elliott Smith made the world a more beautiful place, and in death his legacy will be this beauty, though the world mourns his too-early absence.
(10/29/03 11:16pm)
On Oct. 21, indie folk-rock singer/songwriter Elliott Smith was found dead of a stab wound to the chest in his Los Angeles home. All appearances indicate that it was self-inflicted and intentional.\nPerhaps best known for his Oscar-nominated song "Miss Misery," which appeared on the soundtrack for the 1997 Ben Affleck-Matt Damon film Good Will Hunting, Smith's delicate music and honest lyrics made an indelible impression on anyone who heard them. He was working on his sixth solo album at the time of his death.\nAs violent and horrifying as his end was, fans and friends are not surprised that Smith's tortured life finished tragically. It always seemed a matter of when the fragile artist would submit to the darkness that seemed to permeate his life. Stories abound of his confused and sometimes bizarre actions at his own shows in the last year, from trailing off when speaking between songs to getting into brawls.\nFlaming Lips lead singer Wayne Coyne commented on one incident. "It really was nothing but sad," Coyne told Billboard.com. "You just sort of saw a guy who had lost control of himself." \nMany of his songs dealt with hard realities of Smith's life, namely drug abuse and depression, and his resulting suicidal thoughts. Smith was sometimes expressive about drug use in songs such as "The White Lady Loves You More," from his 1995 self-titled album. Other songs, such as "Everything Means Nothing to Me," expressed Smith's loneliness. \nHe sang, "Someone found the future as a statue in a fountain at/Attention looking backward in a pool of water wishes with/A blue songbird on his shoulder who keeps singing over everything/ Everything means nothing to me." \nThroughout all of his music, there was an underlying sadness, expressed so poignantly and honestly as to touch the heart of any listener and make one wonder at the amount of sadness in this man's soul when so many people seemed to love him. \nWhatever loneliness Smith felt, the outpouring of love from his fans this week proves that Smith was loved and will be greatly missed. Fans held a memorial service at Central Lawn in New York City's Tompkins Square Park on Sunday. In Los Angeles, hundreds of people left notes, photos and other memorabilia outside the Solutions! speaker repair shop on Sunset Boulevard, which appeared in the album cover art for Smith's 2000 release, Figure 8. Smith's official Web site, www.sweetadeline.net, displayed an obituary and tribute letters while the Web sites for Kill Rock Stars, DreamWorks Records and Suicide Squeeze Records, three labels on which Smith's music has appeared, each put his photo on their main pages.\nLuke Wood of DreamWorks Records was quoted on Billboard.com as saying that Smith's life was "a very beautiful and brutal place, and his songs were that ground in between." Many such statements have been made lately as a requiem for Smith's life, but this is perhaps the most apt and precise expression of the man and the artist. On Oct. 21, the brutality of Smith's life overwhelmed the beauty, leaving the world a darker place for his absence.\nIt seems almost in vogue to be a "tortured" artist. Musicians, poets, painters, actors and writers are expected to be intense, irrational, sensitive and lonely, according to the book Media and Society by John Ryan and William M. Wentworth. Sadness seems to go hand in hand with this conception of a lonely, intense artist with suicide becoming romanticized as almost an extension of artistic self-expression. The dramatic suicides of Shakespeare's plays and the harsh reality of the deaths of Vincent Van Gogh, Ernest Hemingway, Virginia Woolf and, in our generation, Kurt Cobain contribute to this ideal of suicide as an expression of disdain for all things worldly by souls too intense for this world.\nSmith's death, like the deaths of these other artists, was far from poetic, however. The man took a knife and buried it within his own heart, an act so ineffably riddled with self-hatred as to be an unmistakably unambiguous, clearly-focused expression of a loathing for his own life and the world so intense that it could only be quenched by piercing it cruelly and decisively. \nThis was no cry for help, no perverted attempt at high art. This was reality at its most brutal. It has left Smith's fans bewildered and lonely, as the outpouring of love has shown this week. Whether he realized it during his lifetime, the talent and poeticism of Elliott Smith made the world a more beautiful place, and in death his legacy will be this beauty, though the world mourns his too-early absence.
(10/29/03 10:54pm)
The last few years have been rough on national punk rock, with the deaths of Joey and Dee Dee Ramone of the Ramones and Clash front man Joe Strummer. Punk rock is usually associated with electric guitars with lots of energy and lyrics filled with teenaged angst. The original punk bands were made of the first musicians to express anger in their music, IU music professor Andy Hollinden says. \nPunk has existed since the '60s garage-punk predecessors, such as the MC5, The Stooges and the Monks, becoming widely known through the mid-'70s punk revolution of the Ramones and the Sex Pistols. The music went underground with the hardcore of the '80s, touring America's basements and small venues, helping to spawn indie rock movements, says Hollinden, who teaches History of Rock and Roll.\nIn the '90s, punk revived, breaking into the forefront of rock consciousness with the grunge movement and the resurrection of mainstream pop-punk in bands like Green Day. \nOver the decades, punk has split into hybrid forms, such as hardcore, pop-punk, ska-punk, post-punk and several others still popular today.\nBut the deaths of some of punk's founding fathers, interlaced with the splintering of punk into subgenres can leave some wondering: Is punk itself dead?\nSeveral Bloomington residents and students would say no.\n"It ain't even close to dead," Hollinden says.\nIt's the "music of the dispossessed, angry youth," as Hollinden put it. He explains punk's longevity as a result of its ability to express youthful anger. \n"It gives people a voice, a chance to get out there to say what's on their minds," Hollinden says.\nBloomington has been host to a diverse music scene for decades, and punk continues to thrive here despite the closing of several venues in the last few years. The Cellar Lounge closed down in early 2002; Space 101 and Second Story (although recently reopened) each shut their doors within the last couple of years as well. Dave Adicted of local pop-punk band the Nicotones says the closing of Second Story last year was a real downer for the Chuck Talor and safety pinsporting scene.\n"That let a lot of people down. If a punk band came through and they didn't play Rhino's, they played there," Adicted says.\nPossibly the most often-cited of these former venues in terms of the punk scene was Secret Sailor, the alternative bookstore that hosted many free or donation-only punk shows from early 2000 until January 2002. Secret Sailor was a gathering place for people with specific political views, including anti-authoritarian activists, free thinkers, revolutionaries and radicals.\nBloomington punk bands were notorious for rocking the bookstore.\nOne of these bands was the Sissies, who was together from 1998 until the end of 2001, when it played its final show at Secret Sailor. \nFormer Sissies band member and head of local punk label Plan-It-X Records, Chris Clavin, chalks these losses up to simple changes over time in the punk scene. \n"Things always change here, it keeps it interesting," Clavin says. "I do wish we had more venues but they will come back, they always do. Just wait."\nClavin has been involved in the Bloomington punk scene since 1994, playing in several bands which have since broken up, including the Ted Dancin' Machine and Operation: Cliff Clavin in addition to the Sissies. He's currently a member of the Devil is Electric and The Ghose Mice, who are on tour in Europe right now. \nPlan-It-X Records was founded by Sam Dorsett in 1994, and Clavin has been heavily involved with the label since its inception. The Plan-It-X Web site, www.plan-it-x.com, expresses a non-profit policy toward the music business. It reads, "Plan-It-X records is not about making money. We are about getting punk music heard." On the site, Clavin explains that Plan-It-X only charges $5 for each CD it sells, and began by charging only $1 per cassette tape in 1994. \nThis emphasis on a scene that is not heavily profit-driven seems to permeate many accounts of the basement show scene in Bloomington, especially. Even before several of the concert venues closed in the last few years, basement shows have always been an integral part of the Bloomington punk scene. Often, bands will play a show in a friend's basement either free of charge or on a donation-only basis. \n"[Basement shows] are always the most fun," says Adicted, vocalist and guitarist for the Nicotones.\nAdicted says basement shows are more party-ish, and fun to attend with a group of friends. He says the Nicotones, formerly called the Abercrombie Skins, played several shows at a friends' former home, which was then called the Octopus Palace. "They lived there two years, and they did more shows than god," Adicted says.\nThe friendly atmosphere of basement shows might be a little off-putting to people who are not friends with the hosts or the bands, however. Clavin says, "They are intimidating but they are also very fun. I wish kids could get over the intimidating factor. If they could I think they would really enjoy themselves." \nAdicted, too, agrees people should go to shows even if they aren't friends with the band. "We have friends that just come to see us, but you should support your local punk scene," Adicted says.\nRhino's has also become a very important venue for punk bands. Ali Haimson, guitarist for local punk band What the Kids Want and former Sissies band member, emphasizes the importance of having an all-ages venue for punk rock. What the Kids Want only plays all-ages shows. "It's mostly just because all of us, when we were teenagers, we liked to go to shows, and I remember how horrible it is not to be able to go," Haimson says. "Rhino's has become a really awesome place where lots and lots of kids go every weekend."\nRhino's Assistant Director Bob Nugent says the venue hosts around four or five punk shows per month, including both local and national acts. \n"In our lifetime we've had the privilege of having some of the biggest names in punk play here from hardcore punk legends the Bad Brains, the Queers, Earth Crisis and Greg Ginn of Black Flag, to more modern punk acts like Hot Water Music, Alkaline Trio, Tilt, Against Me, The Teen Idols and Thursday."\nAll Rhino's shows cost $5, keeping with the low-cost trend of free or donation-based basement shows. In addition to Rhino's, bands also sometimes play free shows at the on-campus student radio station, WIUS, or at local book stores, Clavin says.\nChristopher Taylor of What the Kids Want says it would also be good for Bloomington to have a venue that "catered to people of all ages, and people who want to drink," in order to have a more inclusive punk scene.