T Arts & Entertainment SgSSg?
Venerable ‘3’ virtuosos to entertain
and uplift tonight in the Ranch Bowl
Hy Geoff McMurtry
Senior Editor
Economic growth is alive and well
at Geffen Records.
The band “3made up of refugees
of Emerson, Lake, Palmer and Asia,
will play tonight at Omaha’s Ranch
Bowl, 1606 S. 72nd street.
Featuring a polished, grandiose
virtuosity, highly reminiscent of
those bands over the last decade or so,
but without the visionary brilliance
. that marked the best early-’70s work
of Emerson Lake and Palmer, 3 relics
mostly on the attempted similarity of
songwriter Robert Berry and the es
tablished showbiz marquee value of
the names Emerson and Palmer.
Like Asia before them, as well as
recent incarnations of Genesis, Yes,
Jethro Tull, and myriad other late
blooming intellectual-hippie bands
of the post-’60s Art-Rock boom, 3
seems happily mired in the rut of
being yet another part of our decade’s
Aging Has-been Series — a highly
profitable trail of tours and albums
featuring the names of musical eld
erly statesmen you might stili feel a
i
loyalty to.
As with recent records by all of the
above named defendants, if all the
units “3 to the Power of Three” will
inevitably sell wereplaccdcnd toend,
the resulting cobwebbcd shelf space
next to “Brain Salad Surgery” would
stretch from Roca to Valparaiso.
Exhibit A in this case, 3’s latest
album, mystically titled “. . . to the
Power of Three,” is a collection of
semi-interesting songs about rela
tionships, poignant Medievalism,
poignant medieval relationships and
other fascinating stuff.
Produced by Berry and Palmer, but
mostly highlighted by Keith
Emerson’s Wall o’ Synth arrange
ments, the album is perhaps a cut
above most of the recent Golden
Agers glut, but still follows the same
well-trod paths, and adheres to the
same stoic rules of unfeeling, unencr
getic, virtuosity-for-the-sake-of-vir
tuosity.
People who acquire their musical
tastes from new equipment roundups
in Techno-Innovation News maga
zine and trained pianists who don’t
want to feel that their youth was a bad
“investment” will undoubtedly de
fend this sort of fare to its death
(which will come when Geffen de
cides a different combination could
move more platinum), but this is still
a basically dull, repetitive, and flatly
hook-less type of mainstream pop. As
if to add insult to annoyance, most of
these musicians and their ilk curi
ously consider themselves too high
brow to be labelled as such,
.. to the Power of Three” even
features 3’s nifty new interpretation
of the Byrds’ “Eight Miles High.” I
realize it constitutes a great lack of
mental shame to include a lyric sheet
when you have nothing to say, but to
actually claim “revised lyric” credit
(not lyrics, “lyric,” O thee of little
pretentiousness) just for rearranging
the grammar of someone else’s song
trips over the line of ludicrous gall.
As if hearing the original used to
sell magazines weren’t enough, now
my memory is forever scarred by
hearing it abominably Korg-sampled,
and sounding like incidental back
ground music in the ship’s elevator of
some low-rent robots vs. muppets
Sci-Fi movie.
Opening for 3 will be regional
Top-40-and-more cover band On the
Fritz. Doors will open at 7:30, and the
Fritzes will take the stage at 9 p.m.
Rock'n'roll clothing store
sells headbanging fashions
By Micki Haller
Senior Editor____
The mannequin outside the store
front of 2017 O St. was dressed in
zebra-striped spandex, chains, hand
cuffs, a white frightwig and a little
leather.
It could only be Boog s
Rock’n’Roll Boutique.
Gayle Hohl, a.k.a. Boog, moved to
the store about three weeks ago, she
said.
“I outgrew my living room,” she
said.
Hohl has been selling rock’n’roll
clothing for more than two years.
“I’m just a person,” Hohl said. “I
just like people to look good.”
Hohl’s outrageous and flirtatious
merchandise is a sampling of head
banger fashion.
Lipstick-kissed panties drape ar
tistically over a mirror. Spandex,
leather and lace hang on the racks in
a rainbow of unnatural colors.
Boog’s even has a consignment
section.
Above the rack hangs a hand
printed poster: “We got most of this
stuff from a little old lady who only
wore them to church on Sundays ...
honest!”
Some little old lady. Among the
shorts and black tops is a see-through
fish net blouse with silver spangles.
The walls of the small store are
decorated with the posters of various
rockers. Boog’s has two display cases
featuring handcuffs, jewelry, spikes
and gloves in lavender, white and
black lace — not to mention leopard
skin spandcx.
Whatever Boog’s doesn’t have,
Hohl is ready to order from oneof her
numerous catalogues.
Boog’s prices are reasonable. The
lowest price is $3 for a pair of car
rings. Handcuffs or gold lame under
wear cost about $10. The highest
price is $ 160 for a Bon Jovi Hardware
Coat.
Hohl said she likes all of her mer
chandise, but it’s hard to choose a
favorite.
“I wear so much of it, I don’t
know,” she said.
If forced to pick, she said, a sequin
skirt or pants would be her favorite.
Lancllc, her mannequin in front of
the store, brings a lot of people into
the store.
Lanelle’s striking looks are
changed every few weeks, Hohl said.
“I have to get her some shoes. She
borrowed my boots,” Hohl said.
“She’s not my size.”
Hohl seemed to almost fall into the
clothing business.
“I know way too many musicians,”
she said.
See BOOG’S on 10
Benefit show for Jesse Jackson tonight;
John L. Walker to give free oboe recital
The Nebraskans for Jesse Jackson
are sponsoring an all-ages benefit
dance Friday nightat the Reunion, the
new student union at 16th and V/
streets.
The 8 p.m. to midnight show fea
tures local singcr/songwritcr/musi
cian Laurie McClain, along with local
bands Trout Mystery, 13 Nightmares
and Elysium Crossing.
The event is free, but donations for
the candidate will be accepted.
John L. Walker will give a free
oboe recital Friday at 8 p.m. in Kim
ball Hall. The recital is part of his
doctoral work in music arts.
Walker will play the Concerto in G
minor by Handel, “Esprit dc Corps,”
by university of Nebraska composer
and faculty member Randall Snyder
and “the Oboe Sonata Cambtni Quin
tet #3 in F,” by Hindemith.
The Concerto in G minor will be
accompanied by a small string or
chestra, including a harpsichord.
“This will be a real taste of baroque
music,” Walker said.
“Esprit dc Corps,” is an English
horn (tenor oboe) duet. Stephanie
Mcndyk, a graduate oboe major, will
play along with Walker.
The Oboe Sonata Cambim Quintet
#3 in F will be assisted by the Prairie
Wind Quintet.
The recital will feature the oboe in
a variety of roles in a variety of styles,
offering something for everyone
interested in classical music.
Blues-rock band Hoopsnakes
are not rushing their success
By Ken Havlat
Staff Reporter
Mix three parts Lamont Cran
ston Band and one part English
journeyman musician whose cred
its are longer than a telephone pole,
and you come up with the
Hoopsnakes.
The band will be at the Zoo Bar
today and Saturday.
Minneapolis’ Hoopsnakes, hav
ing just released their first self
titled LP on their own Spitfire Rec
ords Label, are beginning a tour of
the western half of the United States
before going to Europe this fall.
The Lamont Cranston Band had
to be considered the ultimate bar
band in the Minneapolis area. The
band’s members slugged it out for
years to make a name for them
selves. Eventually, they wore
thiough the fog of obscurity after 14
years and six albums for RCA and
._
other assorted independent labels.
The Cranston trio (Bruce
McCabe, piano; Charlie Bingham,
guitar; and Jim Novak, drums)
decided in early 1985 to begin the
Hoopsnakes. After adding English
bassist Steve York and with posi
tive responses from audiences, as
well as the band members’ own
desires, the musicians decided to go
at it full time by October 1986.
York said the band members
wanted to play more of their own
compositions instead of just per
forming blues standards.
“I think we are your basic good
blues-rock dance party,” he said.
“You can dance around the house
with it (the album) and us.”
The Hoopsnakes prefer to per
form their tongue-in-cheek musical
stories while writing obscure, yet
sophisticated lyrics, he said.
‘‘We enjoy people singing along
with us,” York said.
The Hoopsnakes began at the
Five Comers bar in Minneapolis
performing Wednesday nights. As
the hand members became happier
with the responses, talk started six
months ago about recording an LP.
York said dial of all the stagger*
ing budgets he has worked with
around such artists as Marianne
Faithfull, Laura Branigan, Joan
Armatrading and Pete Townshend ,
nothing has given him more pleas
ure than making the bare-bones
budget for the Hoop snakes’ LP.
“I’m happier with this band ...
for the first time in 15 years,” he
said. “It is a pleasure working with
a band instead of a frontman with a
big ego.”
York said he found the music
scene in Minneapolis to be much
better compared with New Yoik’s
when he first came to the United
States in 1981 searching for work
with other musicians.
The Hoopsnakes aren’t rushing
success. The band's members have
seen what the “big time” is like and
would rather make it the way they
want to—on their own terms for a
change.
Cover for the Hoopsnake shows
is $3.50 each night. The shows
begin at 9:30 p.m. at the Zoo Bar,
136 N, 14th St. The New High
Flyers will be playing at the the
FAC today.
-*. .-^^r^awBWsnatf^
