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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Feb. 16, 1977)
Wednesday, february 16, 1977 pags8 daily nebrasken Pink Floyd's Review By Dca Vc3 Fiak Fbydi4nfmColumbia JC 34474 Not since the Beatles crossed the Atlantic Ocean has there been such an intense emotional attachment in music like the relationship that exists between music listeners and rock band Fink Floyd. Pink Floyd grabbed the ears of a genera tion with the 1973 release of the now immortal D&k Side of the Moon (DSOTM) album. With DSOTM a new wave ia rock music washed ashore. Some called it the age of gtdgetry, others called it art-rock. Whatever it inlght be ls&eled, Pink Floyd's computer created psychedelia changed rock V roll music forever. What seems most remarkable about DSOTM is that it commanded the listener's attention. It was nearly impossible not to become immersed in songs like "The Great Gig in the Sky", "Us and Them" or "Brain Damage" which all appear on DSOTM and are still irresistible today. In contrast to DSOTM; Animals, the new album from Pink Floyd, is not a very listenable album. It doesn't have the allur ing power of DSOTM. But his doesn't mean Animals isn't a good album. On Animals we find that Pink Floyd has matured as rock musicians. Although a number of very positive things may be said about DSOTM, the fact remains that it was the product of an immature band. DSOTM was rock n roll kids climbing the walls of the studio, twisting every dial in sight, doing anything to produce a unique sound. It was the entry of rock n newest cluttered, not up to legend r( if rV' roll into the third generation since these were the first technicians of rock music. Reccrdlsj studio instrument In fact the recording studio was Pink Floyd's most important instrument. Through the studio, Fink Floyd was able to create sounds that for them were unattainable through the use of the traditional guitar-bass4ceyboards-drums combination. Most importantly the studio techniques and electronic gadgetry helped to cover the band's bluest flaw, mediocre musicianship. On Animals, Pink Floyd puts their musical talents out front and pushes their manipulative studio tricks into the back ground. Yes, the tricks are still there but they aren't of such a "gee whiz" character typical of the alarm clocks, heartbeats and cash registers on DSOTM. For one thing Pink Floyd uses the electric guitar more proudly than ever before. This is especially apparent on David GilmourY guitar solo during an This guitar solo has an ambiance that, makes one lean back and think, "God, my hearing really improves when I'm stoned." Stoned or not, this instrumental passage hits listeners hard and leaves them begging for more. Use of keyboards, and drums are in line with their use on previous albums. However, there are times onAnimals when keyboardist Richard Wright sounds more like a sleepwalking Gary Wright. i i n- ii ii I. . -i-. i i , r, ""',. v- 4 .,: RickWrt : instrumental passage on Animals "Dogs" . The licks are crisp and searing, almost machine-like. Nick Mason Popular gimmick valuable Pink Floyd also recognizes the value oi a popular gimmick-even one that wasnt their idea. Perhaps this is the.explanation for the voice bag solo on "Pigs (Three Different Ones)." It seems the band believes if the voice bag works well for ' Peter Frampton ("Do You Feel Like We Do? it can only work better for Pink Floyd. And in fact the voice bag solo is an asset to "Pigs (Three Different Ones)" but it may be that the solo wah-wahs a little too long. Although the album shows a stronger and more grown-up band instrumentally, f f ) .J ... i - Photo courtesy of Columbia Records DaveGSnour the conceptual character of Animals is little more than sidesplitting banality. Animals is an oversimplified Orwellian comment on survival in a social system. Animals is composer Roger Waters' con tinued expression of disdain for one thing or another. Waters' disgust was well-stated in "Have a Cigar" from their last album Wish You Were Here: "Well to always had a deep respect and I mean that most sincerely The band is fust fantastic That is reaUy what I think Oh, by the way which one's Pink?", The target of Wish You Were Here was the music business. Now Waters uses the same tone (disgust, dismay and sarcasm) to lash out at the larger world and its faults. While Wish You Were Here was straight forward (and as a result powerful), A nimals is but a weak attempt to construct a clever allegorical essay of life .in the 1970's. In the end the allegory becomes cluttered and the message" only obscures otherwise good music. Rc-sr Water fg m wm mm wm wi m g Review by Michsd Zsngsri Joni IZU&dlfHejiralAsjlvBa 7E-ICS7 The sixties have passed. The war is over, people are try ing to pretend it never happened, Woodstock was eight years ago, prices are up, quality of life is down and Joni Mitchell is 35 years old. At this stage of the game you'd think Mitchell would have gotten out of the morose melancholy that ha; marked her albums from the beginning. Not so. And whai is more, it is what keeps her nrjsic consistent. Her lyrics, lost lovers and lusts have matured to the point where she can laugh at herself, and still blow you away with the emotional intensity. So what do you expect at this time in her life? Another Blue? Mitchell is an artist, and as such has changed and expanded with the times around her. - Hejira then is as much about change as it is about her horniness. Dora szys hspe children " Mama and Betsy ssy-Tmd yourself a charity Help the needy end the crippled or put tome time into ecology" IVsH, there's a wile world of noble causes And lovely LrJsapes to discover But ell I redly wsnt to do r&itnow Is find another lover... Mitchell in transition. The instrumental tracks on Hejira are exceptional. Backing by various members of the LA. Express and. a host of fine studio musicians including jazz bassest Jaco Pastorius give the songs an unisdulgsnt lushsess. The simplicity of earlier albums is gone. Suited her best What is there in its stead is a leaning to jazz, a medium that has always suited her best In the wake of the musical onrush, Mitchell vocals have been somewhat less adventuresome. She does no falsetto meandering as she almost always has in the past. In places she talks lyrics instead of singing thern. The vocals on the album are its weakest link. It is definitely Mitchell, but you get the impression that a tired Mitchell is behind the voice. "Black Crow" spotlightj this problem. A strong intro duction and backing track starts the song bubbling until it's cocking, then a clumsy Mitchell enters, half shout ing, half hurrying to get too many lyrics in too little space and the song is lost. ' The tempo and general style are similar to "Big Yellow Taxi," but the performance is sad . Most of the material she is working with is exceptional. She still has a flair for unusual phrasing and a strong sense of lyrical integrity. Her lyrics on "Coyote", and a host of other songs suggest that Mitchell has been on the road. "... a prisoner of the white lines on the freeway" as she puts it-passing by lovers and friends on an endless treadmill. Mood pieces In "Coyote" she shines. Her subtle suggestiveness and rooted descriptions make for one of the nicer mood pieces on the alburn. It speaks of the necessity for making a choice between love, work and liberty. 1 Photo courtesy of AmfUtm Records Joni MitcheB, back again with Hejira. r trie meiancnoiy Coyotes in the coffee shop He s staring a hole in his scrambled eggs He picks up my scent on his fingers While he 's watching the waitress' legs ... Either he's going to have to stand end fight or get on out of here Leonard Cohen calls this prose-rock. And certainly the lyrics are up front on all but a few of the songs. "Furry Sings the Blues" is a good example of Mitchells ample talents in descriptive prose. In it she describes (Over veteran blues singer Furry Lewis' strenuous objections) the decaying Beale Street, along with it's rich rag-time history. Neil Young makes a guest appearance on the song playing blues harp. The song does not adapt well to Young's feeble harmonica playing. He fills when he gets the chance but after a while it's almost funny, in an eerie sort of way. "Furry Sings the Blues" is one of the strong est cut on the LP regardless. Close to remote people - Mitchell seems to have a closer empathy with remote people and places than she does with tangible things in hei environments. v In "Furry" she speaks to W.C. Handy who is long dead. In Amelia it is woman aviator Arabia Eairhart, whose fate is stm unknown. In the eight-minute epic "Song for Sharon" she brings it closer. Talking to an old friend, Mitchell makes the mandatory comments on her love life, and her past and present thoughts about marriage. Mitchell dubbed some eerie backround vocals in the song that give it an incredible depth. Once again Mitchell lyrically comes through with power. Many people in the press and the record stores have been disappointed by Mitchell's showing on the Hejira LP. While it isn't as accessible musically as she has been in the past, I can't say it is not her best. Mitchell is experimenting, and as long as she goes on in this line, each additional album will be an entity unto it self. By this standard, it would be hard to downgrade Hejira. It is a tremendous job to do a consistent album in which all of the material stands, and Mitchell has done it 22asn.