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About The daily Nebraskan. ([Lincoln, Neb.) 1901-current | View Entire Issue (Oct. 29, 1998)
"' KkULJililiSiillic^^^^^^^H -- - Eds “Electro-shock Blues” DreamWorks Grade: A A man named E seems metre like a character from a sadly surreal KurtVonnegut novel than a living, breathing and even serious musician. Bom Mark Everett, his father was a world renowned physicist, who handled his success by becoming increasingly withdrawn from his fam ily until he died of a heart attack when E was only 19. His mother provided no comfort for her son, who had steady drug and auto-theft habits by the time he was 13. She found solace in the bottle, a situation that only worsened as it became increasingly appar ent that E’s sister was suffering from severe men tal illness. After several attempts at suicide, his sister finally met success. E buried her two years ago, shortly after he floated across the screens of MTV viewers everywhere with the gravity-defy ing Eels hit, “Novocaine.” Thic timp flip flnofintY epneofinn nroe ran 1 Desperate for expression, E, who operates as the chief songwriter for the tend, crafted a 16-song album dedicated to what he calls the “greatest American taboo since sex” He’s talking about death, and “Electro-shock Blues” unwinds like an ethereal liturgy for a soul damned to the eternal torture of... Earth. Although inspired by lus sister’s suicide, “Electro-shock Blues” struggles with issues of life and the painful journey of existence after death. But the album doesn’t wallow in pity and is far from sounding weepy. In fact, it’s riddled with complex pop tunes that defy their somber inspi ration. The first single, “Last Stop: This Town,” is the most infectious tune to be released this year, and it will stay stuck in your head long after you’ve moved on to a better place. E, who has always been more of a post-mod ern poetic conscience than anything, has finally penned his definitive work. And the scornful Wannabe Spice Girls strut girl power for ad ■ Four New York preteens chosen from thousands of hopefuls. NEW YORK (AP) - Many par ents would cringe at the sight of their preteen daughters baring their midriffs and sporting rub-off tat toos, platform shoes and clip-on . navel rings. But thousands of mothers and fathers accompanied their scantily clad offspring to an audition TUesday. The children were vying for a chance to be their favorite Spice Gid in a commercial. “She loves the Spice Girls, Baby Spice in particular, and Mom had to work,” said 34-year-old Bill Sanger of his 7-year-old daughter Brittany. “I don’t want her to look back as an adult and wonder if she had the stuff to be a star.” Out of a sea of miniature Baby, Scary, Posh and Sporty wannabes - no Gingers, thank you (she quit the group earlier this year) - only one set of Spice Girl look-alikes were chosen. The winners were Carissa Farina, 10, as Sporty; Sarah Back, 10, as Posh; Dina Lorraine Moakley, 9, as Baby; and Nirine Biown, 12, as Scary. All the girls are from New York. The commercial, for a line of dolls and other Spice Girls prod ucts, begins filming next week. While die auditions were limit ed to children between the ages of 5 and 12, the competition was hardly kid stuff. One 9-year-old Scary Spice imitator, sporting oversized plastic green glasses and a spray-aided hairdo that can be described only as untamed, coolly surveyed a rival and said, “You look nothing like' her.” The response was immediate and crushing, and it came with a faux British accent “Well, Scares-me-Spice, I can sing. I can dance. I can act We’ll see what they say inside.” Parents could offer only wan smiles for each other. And many didn’t pretend to know a thing about the British pop group. “Honestly, I don’t know Baby Spice from heather spice,” Sanger said.. “Oh, Dad,” said blond pony tailed Brittany, covering her eyes. “Please, not so loud.” nature of his songs are not lost in the pop-candy bliss. From start to finish, “Electro-shock Blues” unearths E’s despair, and he never fails to com ment on the most minute of depressing details. The first track, “Elizabeth on the Bathroom Floor,” is almost entirely silent save for a tinkling piano and soft guitar. The brief songs ends in the couplet “My name’s Elizabeth, My life is shit * and piss.” With other tracks such as “Going to Your Funeral Part I,” “My Descent into Madness” and “Hospital Food,” E takes the. phenomenon of - death down to microscopic levels of isolation, pain and the hopeless irony of salvation. But that’s not all. Instnimentally, the songs manage to challenge their stunning lyrical com plexity. Radiohead, Morphine and Pavement are the most obvious influences, but E deserves credit for weaving the seemingly incompatible elements of grief rock and pop rock into a seam less, goigeous fabric. E may be grieving, but he’s not nostalgic. The pop beauty of Eels’ last release, “Beautiful Freak,” is found here, too, but without seeming like reincarnated leftovers.“Electro-shock Blues” manages the precarious balance of gen uine emotion with pop sensibility: a feat many have tried and most have failed to accomplish E cannot bring his sister back, but her death has inspired his greatest achievement and brought her to life for thousands of listeners. This is the irony E sings about -Bret Schulte Reel Big Fish “Why Do They Rock So Hard?” Mojo Records Grade: D+ Just as last year’s alternative backlash struck and ska acts hit the mainstream, Reel Big Fish jumped in at the right time. The band released the sarcastic debut record “Turn The Radio Off” and soon they were going from playing small clubs to amphitheaters. ‘Turn The Radio Off” worked well because the band played a lively blend of ska and punk Former Nebraskan opens exhibit at Haydon Gallery A former Nebraska resident returns home from Arizona to open an exhibition at the Haydon Gallery, 335 N. 8th St., on Friday. Robin Smith, a former resident of Ashland, makes the trek from Arizona State University, where he is a professor of art His exhibit “Still Life Paintings” explores the minute changes that light and placement make upon forms in space. Described as “both inviting and confounding,” the col lection will remain at the Haydon through Nov. 21. Like Smith, his pieces have spanned the country, having been featured in exhibitions in Oklahoma City, Rochester, Minn., and Salt Lake City. Friday evening’s reception runs from 7 to 9. For more information call (402) 475-5421. ■ while ripping on shallow individuals in songs such as “Trendy” and “Sellout,” and singing of teen-age pessimism in “Everything Sucks ” However, in the band’s new release, “Why Do They Rock So Hard?,” Reel Big Fish not only does its typical ranting, but it also plays the style it is making fun of, namely rock music.. “Why Do They Rock So Hard?” is full of bad electric guitar that takes away from the act’s strong horn section. Not only do “Brand New Song” and “Everything Is Cool” not work with the rock-fueled formula, but they prove to be less rhythmic and more childish than anything on “Itim the Radio Off.” The remakes of “Thank You For Not Moshing” and “I’m Cool” aren’t any better than the original versions, and “I Want Your Girlfriend to Be My Girlfriend” is the band's worst live song and only takes up space on the record. Only acouple of die songs here work at all. “The SetUp (You Need This)” is easily the best MWVIV, UO iV W OV1V IV UWV U1V ivvn guiuu W IU1 U1V horn section in a way that is complementary. “Scott’s A Dork” is an enjoyable and humorous listen, simply because the chorus is so point less. For the most part though, “Why Do They Rock So Hard?” sounds like a long and weak ska-rock remix that only Puff Daddy would con sider. If they know what’s good for diem, Reel Big Fish will put more ska chords back into its songs, because this album will probably never see the light of a compact disc player again. -Patrick Miner The Mighty Mighty Bosstones “Live From The Middle East” Mercury Records Grade: Bt The Slackers “The Question” Hellcat Records Grade: B Last year, hybrid ska music hit a commer cial peak. Albums and tours by bands such as ska-core The Mighty Mighty Bosstones, ska punk Reel Big Fish and ska-reggae Hepcat swept the nation and held radio by its ear. Although the craze has since shifted to swing music, the ska-influenced acts continue to release quality albums, with the aforemen tioned Bosstones and reggae-ska act The Slackers hitting the stores with new albums this month. As anyone who has been to a Bosstones live show will explain, the band’s concerts live up to all of the hype they have received over the past decade. “Live From the Middle East,” named after the club where the songs were recorded, portrays the band’s boisterous ska show as well as possible without the listener actually being there. The album is a solid mix from the band’s five albums, from classics “Hope I Never Lose My Wallet” and “Cowboy Coffee” to more recent hits “Royal Oil” and “The Rascal King” What makes this record great is that it com bines interaction between lead singer Dicky Barrett and die crowd as well as great-sounding renditions of classic live songs, “Whore’<IYoi£Go/* best known from the film “CluelesS/* and “Hell of A Hat” sound best here, with Barrett’s scratchy voice and the Bosstones’ horn section taking over. While it would have been nice to hear the complex “Awfully Quiet” or Barrett screaming ■I— I on “Issachar,” it’s hard to argue with 21 of the band’s greatest hits. ■> “Live From The Middle East” can give casual Bosstones listeners a glimpse into some of the band’s greatest work, and it gives long time fans a good live mix with some slight changes to the tunes thrown in by the band. In contrast, The Slackers album, “The Question,” is much more laid back than the lively Bosstones’ affair. The record is The Slackers’ second in the past year on Hellcat Records, which is eo-owned by Epitaph head Brett Gurewitz and Rancid’s Tim Armstrong. Fronted hv the venins sonowriter Vie Ruggiero, The Slackers were the final band to play at the July 19 Warped Tour date in Lawrence, Kan. There they played several songs from the then-unreleased “The Question,” and the band received a tremendous response from the crowd. Simply, the songs on “The Question” are more reggae-edged than last year’s “Redlight,” which had a more soulful sound with die aka grooves. “The Question” flows well with a continu ously relaxed sound, with songs such as “Knowing” and “Do You Know” sounding sim ilar to the grooves of labelmates Hepcat and “And I Wonder?” sounding like a ska-laced oldie. There are two versions here of the title track “The Question,” including “The Question (Version),” which features toasting (reggae style rap) by artist Paul Perkins, adding another dimension to an already solid record. -Patrick Miner I abortion care kind, confidential services • Outpatient Care •Awake or Asleep’Parental No tification Assistance* Immedrate Appointments, In ducing Saturdays'Total OB/GYN Health Care* Full Time, Board Certified OB/GYN Physicians •Dr.GW.Orr&Dr.CJLaBenz OMAHA* 554-0110, TOLL-FREE • 1-800-922-8331 201S. 46th St, Omaha HE 68132 httptfgynpages.com/omaha •
