Arts & Entertainment
op band ‘Big Thing’ rocks at local bars
I By John A. Skretta
Staff Reporter
For the third night in a row, Big
Thing jammed to the crowd at Os
par’s, 800 O St. The small venue was
packed, the dance floor was swing
ing, and the sound was appropriately
“big.” You had to shout to order a
beer, but nobody seemed to mind,
least of all the band members.
Big Thing ravaged its way through
a musical smorgasbord that included
selections from R.E.M., the Talking
Heads, Depeche Mode, Devo and
George Michael. Band members —
Justin Hankins on guitars, Ray Yaruso
on bass, Craig Enders on keyboards,
Davcy Sumner on drums and CJ
Hauptmcicr on lead vocals — all
seemed to thoroughly enjoy their work.
A bandana was draped from
Hauptman’s microphone Steven Ty
ler-stylc, and he toweled off before
the band launched into the night’s
closer, a rousing, seven-minute ren
dition of the Kingsmcn’s “Louie,
Louie.” Yaruso plied a funky bass
groove and Enders added a bluesy
keyboard solo in this musical flurry.
Admittedly, this band can swing.
But do they have what it takes to
become the area’s next “big thing,”
as their name indicates?
Big Thing rose out of the ashes of
Lie Awake, a formerly well-known
dance band in the Lincoln area. Both
bass player Yaruso and keyboardist
Enders were in Lie Awake,according
to vocalist Hauptmcicr.
“They were just going to quit the
' band, and give it up, lead a normal
life for a while,” Hauptmeicr said.
Lie Awake’s lead singer had left
Lincoln for a spot in a Los Angeles
band, and Hauptmcicr chanced into
an opportunity to jam with the remnants
of Lie Awake.
, “It w^nt great,” Hauptmeicr said.
It clicked really well, so I landed the
spot.”
As a result, Hauptmeier left the
band he had been singing for, and Big
Thing was bom. A month later,
members played their first gig at
Nebraska Wesleyan University’s
homecoming.
“Wc had 30 days to learn 30 songs,
so wc kicked out the sftngs real busi
nesslike, one song after the other every
night,” Hauptmeicr said.
Since the fall gig, Big Thing has
played several different venues, but
none so frequently as Oscar’s. None
theless, Hauptmeier affirms the band’s
desire to slay mobile and avoid be
coming a house band.
“We’re still a really young band,
and we definitely haven’t played all
the places we can,” Hauptmeier said.
“Wc played Chesterfield’s in Febru
ary for the first lime, we’ve played
the Ranch Bowl (Omaha) and most
likoly we’ll try to hit Kansas City by
the middle of the summer,” he added.
Playing a variety of locales is an
important element in keeping the music
fresh and the fans excited, Hauptmeier
said. He hinted at the disparity be
tween Omaha and Lincoln venues.
“Wc’vc played the Ranch Bowl
several times, and Omaha’s crazy.
Just crazy! There’s a wider array of
people in the audience and ages in the
audience from the greater population
base of Omaha,” he said. “We get
people in Omaha from the college
scene up to quite a bit older, like in
their 30s and 40s. Here in Lincoln,
our audiences have been almost strictly
college students.”
One of the problems with landing
gigs at different venues, according to
Hauptmeicr, is a phenomenon he labels
‘‘the band recession.”
Michelle Paulman/Daily Nebraskan
“Big Thing” rocks the crowd at Oscar’s, 800 P St., Saturday night.
“As far as college bands in the
area, especially dance-oriented col
lege bands, there just aren’t really
that many,” Hauptmeier said. As a
result, many venues that would be
willing to host bands haven’t had a
w'idc range of groups from which to
select.
As Big Thing develops musically,
Hauptmeicr said he hopes to include
original songs in the band’s set,but he
said he feels that in Lincoln, “you
almost have to slick with cover mate
rial.”
“In this whole region, Omaha,
Lincoln, ct cetera, people want to
hear their favorite songs. On the other
hand, if you’re a decent band, then
they’re going to be more receptive to
See BIG THING on 10
Movie strips shoot-’em-up image,
gives cowboys a contemporary look
By Jim Hanna
Sonior Reporter
Hollywood’s treatment of cow
boys has historically been one
dimensional: strapping, handsome
men with six-shooters blasting
savage Indians and securing this
great land of ours for future gen
erations.
“My Heroes Have Always Been
Cowboys” is a different breed of
western. Stripping away much of
the classic Old West romance, the
movie deals with one particular
contemporary cowboy and his
struggles as a normal guy.
H.D. (Scott Glenn) is a rodeo
“My Heroes Have
Always Been
Cowboys”
Staning
Scott Glenn,
PG
: 3 1/2
slar who lours the lower Midwest
abusing animals for cheering
throngs. One day, while substitut
ing fora rodeo clown, H.D. isgorcd
by a bull and is knocked oul of
commission.
He decides lo return to his
hometown of Guthrie, Okla., to
recuperate and check in on his aging
father, known only as Dad (Ben
Johnson).
Alas, H.D.’s conniving sister
Cheryl (Tcss Harper) and her hus
band Clint (Gary Bussey) have pul
Dad into a nursing home and have
begun proceedings to sell off his
land and make a whole bunch of
money.
Huffy H.D. will have none of it
See COWBOY on 10
Award-winning band
brings blues to Zoo
From Staff Reports &
Blues music will be rich in Lin
coln tonight, as Anson Funderburgh
and the Rockets featuring Sam Mey
ers take the stage at the Zoo Bar.
In 1988, Funderburgh and his band
cleaned up at the prestigious W.C.
Handy Awards Show in Memphis,
Tenn., capturing four categories.
Anson Funderburgh and the Rock
ets were voted Blues Band Of The
Year, and their album “Sins” was
voted Con tern porary BluesAlbumOf
The Year. Vocalist and harmonica
player Meyers combined with Fun
derburgh for “Changing Neighbor
hoods,” which took the Blues Song
Of The Year award. Meyers’ ability
with the harmonica earned him the
top honor in the Blues Instrumentalist
category.
The Rockets are definitely not
lightweights when it comes to play
ing the blues. Thc band is on the road
more than 300 days a year.
Along with Funderburgh and Myers,
the Rockets current lineup includes
Mike Judge, bass; Matt McCabe, piano;
and Danny Cochrcn, drums.
Tonight’s show starts at 9 at the
Zoo Bar, 136 N. 14th St. 14th St.
Cover charge is $4.
Courtesy of I.R.S.
Musically adventurous Havana 3AM
can keep listeners dancing all night
By Matt Larsen
Staff Reporter
Havana 3AM’s debut release uses
an offbeat mix of musical styles to
produce a musically adventurous,
catchy piece of work.
Former Clash bassist Paul Simonon
and singcr/guitari st Nigel Dixon form
the nucleus of Havana 3AM. They
wrote the songs with the help of lead
guitarist Gary Myrick while Travis
Williams provided percussion to the
affair.
The result ranges from dark and
moody to bouncy and light. They also
manage to carry off the trick of being
political without being pretentious.
The distinctive sound of this quar
tet comes from its mix of pop, reggae
and Mexican music. That may not
sound like the formula for guaranteed
musical success, but Havana 3AM
makes it work. Many of the songs
sound familiar, but are tinged with
just enough of this offbeat stuff to be
Havana 3AM
“Havana 3AM”
IRS Records
Rating: 31/2
Ratings are 1 (bad) to 5 (excellent),
interesting.
“Reach the Rock” is the first single
from the album. It is the talc of youth
gangs in the city, highlighted by
Simonson’s funky bass line. It is the
best of several “youth gone wild” type
songs on the album like “Joyride,”
“Blue Motorcycle Eyes” and “Surf In
The City.”
At tnc other end of the musical
spectrum arc songs like “What About
Your Future,” “The Hardest Game”
and “Living In This Town.” They are
upbeat and danccablc, while talking
about depraved children and welfare.
This may sound strange, but it’s a
neat alternative to the usual pop piffle
about girls with cute names and cruel
hearts. Havana 3AM may be feeding
the listener a political message, but
they at least give it to us in something
that you can dance to.
For example, “What About Your
Future” starts out with an acoustic
guitar solo that segues into a bass
thumping, guitar-ringing outcry for
the homeless and impoverished.
Strange but true lyrics like “Women
on the corner left out in the rain/
homeless and loveless can you take
the pain” share time with a jumpy
dance beat.
Probably the best song of the col
See HAVANA on 10
