Brian Curtis of the Lincoln band Straw Dog plays at FtoodFest ’93, last Sunday. Dwnon lwdn
os’s life I
New band sinks teeth into local music scene
By Erin Conboy
Staff Reporter _
When Straw Dog made its Lincoln debut
at The Edge last January, it was with little
fanfare and it certainly was less than glam
orous.
“I think six relatives came,” the band’s
drummer, Scott Halverson, said.
But things are improving, especially af
ter a busy weekend playing around town,
including a stint at Pinewood Bowl's
FloodFest. Now, Straw Dog is preparing to
hit the local music scene hard.
Halverson, bassist Mike Wells and gui
tarist Brian Curtis met while working at
Nebraska Book Company.
They formed Straw Dog in January after
discovering they had similar musical tastes
but no outlet for expression.
Curtis said the band works hard to per
form only original material, despite having
trouble gaining a college audience with
unfamiliar music.
“It’s tough to get a cover (charge) if no
one knows who you are,” Wells said.
But the band is hanging on —practicing
diligently, booking as many gigs as possible
and writing more songs.
Halverson, Wells and Curtis all collabo
rate on the band’s songs, though Curtis does
most of the songwriting.
“I just write it. I start with the main music
melodies, I bring it here and write the words
while they are learning (the melody) to it.”
Curtis — who is dso the band’s lead
vocalist—said the band plays a wide range
of music, from acoustic to Celtic, jazz to tne
blues.
Straw Dog recorded a four-track demo
this summer, a demo Halverson said repre
sented the band’s style.
— if
It’s tough to got a cover
(charge) If no one knows
who you are.
—Wells
Straw Dog bassist
-ft -
“Wedding Dress” is an acoustical piece
inspired by the Celtic musical tradition, he
said. Curtis described “Rachel,” another
Straw Dog original, as “disco-funk.”
Straw Dog’s will perform at the New
Music Festival on Oct. 3 at Omaha’s Howard
Street Tavern, at The Edge with Such Sweet
Thunder on Oct. 16, and October dates at
both the Zoo Bar and Duffy’s Tavern.
“We’re getting recognition,” Wells said.
“It’s kind of nice to say your band’s name
and not have people have you repeat it three
times — ‘What? Stray Dog?’”
Laser concerts
light up night
at planetarium
By Paula Lavigne
Staff Reporter
Art can be created in many mediums; paint,
clay, stone — the list is endless. At Mueller
Planetarium, artists use lasers to create art from
darkness.
Jack Dunn, Mueller Planetarium’s coordi
nator, brings “Laser Fantasies” to Lincoln. The
shows also use graphics, fog, music and other
special effects to dazzle spectators, he said.
Like most art forms, the creation of a good
laser show is not easy, and it can be quite time
consuming, Dunn said.
A single, two-minute graphic can take up to
two hours for an artist to program, he said.
While the planetarium does have people
who design some of the shows, Dunn said, he
also trades with members of die International
Laser Display Association.
The association consists of 100 laser profes
sionals who exchange ideas and designs inter
nationally.
“We don’t have a full-time artist, so we have
to trade,” Dunn said.
Besides the artists who create the shows,
people are needed to operate the equipment
during each display, he said.
The planetarium’s laser operators and tech
nicians are mostly students with no specific
majors, he said. Only one professional volun
teer is involved.
“I’ve had people who are in everything from
horticulture to English to architecture,” Dunn
said. “I’ve only had one actual physics/astron
omy major work for me.”
Experience in electronics, optics and a fa
miliarity with computers is helpful, but not
necessary, Dunn said. A good working knowl
edge of music also is good,
i “We try to get someone who is familiar with
ithe music of the particular groups,” he said.
The music is an important part of the show,
and fmding the right group is vital.
“Obviously, something like Pink Floyd is
going to sell and is going to be tried ami true,”
he said. “The music lends itself very well to the
light-show medium.”
Other popular bands include Led Zeppelin,
The Doors, Rush and U2, Dunn said.
“The Doors are very big and an interesting
one because there is such a wide audience
appeal,” he said.
See LASER on 10
Bad guy breaks Batman;
Gotham gets new heroes
By William J. Harms
Staff Reporter
Striking fear in the hearts of crim
inals, operating from the shadows, a
vigilante of the night, he is the Batman
—but not the Batman most of us grew
up with.
This summer big changes occurred
in the family of Batman titles, starting
with “Batman" No. 492.
Titled “Knightfall," the story laid
the groundwork that would topple
Bruce Wayne and bring about a new
Batman.
The new caped crusader, Jean-Paul
Valley — also known as Azrael —
was trained to be the protector of the
secret order of St. Dumas. The perfect
assassin. Valley is everything Wayne
is not: ruthless, unforgiving, and ex
tremely brutal.
“He’s really a reflection of our
times," said Scott Peterson, editor of
“Detective Comics,” (me of the four
monthly Batman titles.
“This whole MTV generation has
a very cynical view of the world, and
♦he Batman is a reflection of this.
IT
-M
(Batman group
editor) Denny O’Neil
suggested that we
replace Wayne as the
Batman—get him
out of the costume
and bring In someone
neetm
— Peterson
editor, “Detective Comics “
---f* “
“With the new Batman, it is also a
great chance to explore the character
and see what it is that makes a hero,”
he said.
“Both Wayne and Valley are he
roes, they’re just held up in different
lights,” Peterson said.
The storyline came about during a
conference of the Batman creative
teams, Peterson said.
---
See BATMAN on 10
