Summer’s
hottest rap
is explosive
School’s back in session, and that
means summer’s about over. But for
those of you who missed it or just
plain got lost looking for the latest
hip-hop albums, here’s a rundown of
this summer’s hottest.
We started with a bunch of old
friends like Naughty By Nature, 2Pac
and King Tee. Three groups seemed
to favor a mellow flow this summer.
King Tee had the funk (“Dippin”),
2Pac was retrospective (“Dear
Mama”) and Treach was still Trcach.
Masta Ace was a personal favorite
with more of the laid-back groove and
lyrical flow to match.
The Wu-Tang Clan is still repre
sented with 01’ Dirty Bastard’s “The
Return of the 36 Chambers.” He cre
ated quite a stir with his single
“Shimmy, Shimmy Ya” that sported
the chorus, “Oooh, baby I like it raw,”
which some said referred to sex. ODB
says he was referring to hip-hop.
Following the success of the ODB
came another oflthe year’s fattest al
bums, Raekwon’s “Only Built 4 Cu
ban Linx,” which entered the Bill
board album charts at No. 3. This is a
must-have!
Speaking of must-haves, ifyou want
the most real hip-hop since Nas, check
out “The Infamous” ^Mobb Deep.
These Queens teens come with track
after track of dope cuts with a gritty
New York edge.
Soundtracks abound! We started
the summer with “New Jersey Drive”
and the Dr. Dre-produced “Friday.”
The hottest new tunes are flying off
Russell Simmons’ “The Show,” not to
mention Coolio’s “Gangsta’s Para
dise” from “Dangerous Minds.”
The West Coast was well-repre
sented in the summer of’95. Ice Cube
protege Mack 10 finally dropped his
album. The Luniz kept the Bay going
strong. MC Breed came back as the
“Big Bal ler” while AMG was “Bal lin ’
Outta Control”.
The biggest West Coast attack came
just last week as the Twinz and the
Dove Shack albums were released.
Warren G productions strikes again!
Once again back in New York,
' Grand Puba will blow you away with
his second album that includes a guest
rap by Lord Jammar. Word has it that
Brand Nubian is set to reunite and
drop a new album.
On a quick dance hall tip, Shabba
Ranks’ “A Mi Shabba”'Mad Lion’s
“Real Ting” and Shaggy’s
“Boombastic” were this summer’s
bombs. The queen of the pack, Patra,
just released her new album last week.
Expect it to be a good one.
Thd fall should bring out some fat
albums. Roundingouf August, wg hope
to see Souls of Mischief-for the sec
ond time.
Anyone *who’s heard AZ’s
“Sugarhill” is eagerly awaiting his
debut in late September, as well as
Wu-Tang’s “The Genius” about the
same time. KRS-ONE and Onyx are
also on the board for new albums.
October holds in store tentative
DAS EFX, Erick Sermon, Ice T and
the Pharcyde.
Although the buzz is still out on the
Dr. Dre/Ice Cube album, the next Dre
produced album we’ll probably see is
The D.O.C. “No One Can Do It Bat
ter,” finally back and sporting a grav
elly voice after throat Surgery.
Jay Calderon/DN
Lee Nickolite talks with one of his pit-crew members after competing in the demolition derby at the Nebraska State Fair Saturday
night. H was Nickolite’s seventh derby.
Playing in the mud
Demolition derby a !smashing ’ success
Bv Jeff Randall
Senior Reporter
As the smoke rose over the grand
stand at the Nebraska State Fair late
Saturday night, it would have been
hard for a passerby to fathom what
exactly had transpired.there.
The mud-covered wreckage of doz
ens of cars was heaped info shapeless
piles. The wildly painted steel was
twisted and burned, often beyond rec
ognition.
But this wasn’t a particularly ugly
case of reckless driving. Angry driv
ers and lawyer-beckoning whiplash
victims were nowhere to be found. In
fact, most of the people present at the
scene were smiling, and many were
applauding wildly.
This was the at-first-glance chaos
of the State Fair’s annual demolition
derby. Hundreds of eager audience
members piled into the grandstand
and clubhouse at the State Fair Park’s.
race track to witness the systematic
destruction of automobiles from ev
ery comer of the state. • •
At a little after 7, all eyes in that
audience were directed to the rectan
gular mud pit that was dug out of the
track’s infield. Eight cars and drivers
revved their engines and, with the
wave of an official’s flag, proceeded
to ram into each other until only two
cars were left in working order. *
This process was repeated through
out the night, much to the satisfaction
of the al 1-ages audience.
bach anticipated impact was
greeted with smatterings of applause,
the occasional laugh, and the ever
present “oohs” and “aahs” that tend to
surface whenever a quarterback is
sacked or a figure skater falls while
attempting a triple axel.
The inexperienced members of the
-audience sat in wonder of the pro
ceedings.
“What ’ s going on? 1 can ’ t even tell
what they’re supposed to be doing,”
one woman exclaimedas the first round
of competition began.
Others sat with hands folded and
eyes fixed on the mud pit, waiting for
. the kill.
“There, you see?” one man said as
a car was put out of commission. “Must
have broke his axle. He s finished.
But by the time the first heat was
finished and the two victorious ca».
rolled out of the pit, nearly everyone
there knew what to do.
Applause filled the air, mingling
with the gaseous plumes of smoke that
hovered above the track.
Each heat followed with much the
same results, until the victor was fi
nally named and applauded as a hero.'
The crowd gave him his accolades
with shouts and whistles, and then
audience members began their march
to their own cars.
“Remember,” said a security of
ficer as the crowd walked up the stairs
and out the gates. “Just don’t drive
like that on the highways.”
‘Rangoon’ takes walk on Burmese wild side
Performances
lacking, directing
works in true story
By Emily Wray
film Critic ”
Looking for a good first-date movie
that doesn’t require a lot of thought?
Try another show. Lookingfor a chal
lenging, “based-on-a-true-story”
flick? Try “Beyond Rangoon.”
Starring Patricia Arquette and U
Aurtg Ko, “Beyond Rangoon” is a
walk into the mysterious, sometimes
dangerous country of Burma. Politi
cal instability, brought on by two de
cades of repressive military rule,
abounds in 1988 Rangoon, Burma’s
capital.
Arquette gives a convincing, yet
uninspiring, performance as Laura
Bowman, a doctor who, by traveling
to Burma, hopes to escape the pain of
her husband’s and son’s violent deaths.
Haunted by those flashbacks, Laura
one night breaks a military-imposed
curfew and witnesses an illegal politi
cal demonstration led by Aung San
Suu Kyi (Adelle Lutz), the rebel leader
in the pro-democracy movement.
In the chaos of the demonstration,
Laura loses her passport and must stay
in Burma. She.meets U Aung Ko (U
Aung Ko), who offers to give her an
“unofficial” tour of the Burmese coun
tryside, going “Beyond Rangoon.”
Laura’s adventure grows and be
comes more dangerous as the movie
unfolds. Between numerous appear
ances by the military, U Aung Ko
teaches Laura to deal with her grief.
Thankfully, Laura loses her glazed
look long enough to save her tour
guide and friend when shot by a sol
dier. ' .
High-speed chase's on dirt roads
and many, many shots of dead bodies
break the monotony of runningthrough
tropical jungles, fording rivers and
watching sunsets.
' These many “delights” do not as
sist the plot. The script is poorly writ
ten, making the film slow from the
beginning.
Among the movie’s brighter spots
—U Aung Ko is excellent as a profes
sor/political dissident-turned-tour
guide who doubles as the wise’father
figure.
And director John Boorman shows
talent in the filming of the country
side. Beautiful shots of the landscape
\
Film: “Beyond Rangoon”
't ' m
Stars: Patricia Arquette, U Aung
Ko
Director: John Boorman
Rating: R
Grade: C
Five words: Troubled country
meets troubled doctor
. " :
i
and sunsets are oddly comforting as
such destructive images continue tcj
flash across the screen.
