The Observer • Augustana College • Rock Island, IL • Friday, Apríl 15,1994 THE SOUNDING BOARD ery song seemed potent and riv- tion with the common condition yet subdued. Sounds like I'm de- eted throughout one's entire body of thehuman soul. "Misery Loves scribing a wine .... (a truly wonderful feeling to expe- Company" might be a good theme Grade: A rience). If you ever get the chance for this álbum, if you want to be —Sarah Kretz to see Tilt perform live — GO! facetious about it, which I don't. Tilt is headed by a woman vo- Let's start with "Wilderness," by calist: Cinder Block (not sure if The Choir. "Everybody drinks the Letters From a that is her real name or not). People water from the murky pool/ Surely Paper Ship that know me know that I fali for as it heals your soul you feel your Billy Falcon practically any punk band with body burn.. .Isyourfaithsoright? Polygram Records women. Other band members in- Are you so blessed? Everybody Billy Falcon looks and sounds clude: Jeffery Bischoff (guitar), wanders in the forest . . . Every- like a genuinely nice guy. On his Pete Rypin (bass and vocais), and body wanders in the wilderness." new CD, Letters from a Paper Vince Camacho (drums). This song is pretty humbling, tell- Ship, he poses as the aspiring Tilt' s first full-length álbum in- ing us that we think we know but American rugged cowboy- cludes 14 powerfully punk songs. we really don't. No matter how leather-fringed They ali stand out and are ali very much we search our hearts and live jacket, snake- catchy (lyrically). The one song according to principie there's al- skin boots, that has been playing in my mind ways something we will not un- two-day-old for days now is called "One Day." derstand about someone. facial hair and This song is very fast and very "Keep Me In Mind," by inside,there'sa potent. The back-up vocais of Pete DigHayZoose, is Dr. Wine's least s c r u f f y Rypin are captivating (to say the favorite song on this álbum, but I Springsteen voice that matches the least). It was definitely the best love it. DHZ is out to prove that image. And from what I so recently eight bucks I have spent in a long alternative bands can, and do, play learned of him, he's trying really time. any kind of music, even light jazz. hard to write good songs. I mean, A friend of mine called Tilt the This song makes me feel like I'm really hard. (He even moved to female version of Green Day. in a 1950' s nightclub with its bass, Nashville, for goodness sakes.) Though they are catchy lyrically, piano, and snare drums. But the Thafs why I feel so awful to have they are not "pop-inspired" like lyrics are nothing like what you'd to rip on the artistic works of a man Green Day. I would have to de- hear from a lounge singer. It calls who puts so much effort towards scribe Tilt as Green Day meeting out to those who don't believe, not something he loves. But I'm go- Born Against (a D.C.-based hard- preaching or pushing, but just say- ing to do it any way, just to spare core punk band). Tilt has a unique ing, "Keep me in mind/ Soon you the rest of humanity. hard-edged style to them that is will find/ Ali is for not/ And I* 11 be Maybe I shouldn't be so harsh. Billy Falcons new release, Letters From A Paper Ship, won't hard (no pun intended) to describe. waiting." Following this gentle I mean, if you like country/pop float despite his combination of good lyrics, and effort. Still, do not get me wrong, Tilt is reminder is "Monday World," by with a folksy twist then you might Any Sense, I'd Go Back Home," very punk. The Throes, lamenting the Romans enjoy this CD. Most of the songs, Ain 't Enough Comin' In 7:15 Syndrome with"... just how Otis Rush uses a horn section and piano to Tilt is currently on the indepen- instrument-wise (acoustic guitar, give the blues chords which back dent label of Lookout Records could it be/ So wrong to want the bass, keyboard), maintain the same Mercury Records Rush. (hopefully to stay). I really do not things I never will own?" I won- sounds that create Falcon's par- With a career that has spanned My personal favorite does a know how this band escaped my der that myself sometimes .... ticular style. That could be good if almost half a century, it's hard to pretty good job summing up col- attention for so long. I usually keep "No Ship Corning In," by the you like it or very tedious and un- imagine that blues great Otis Rush lege life. "Homework," a tag- up on music that is put out by Look- Lost Dogs, takes a look at how the interesting,ifyoudon't. The same is making another come-back. team match up between Otis on out. Lookout Records is the same inevitable outside pressures that holds true for Falcon's voice that Ain 't Enough Comin' In is part of guitar and Mick Weaver on organ, label that includes such punk bands must be faced in marriage threaten I mentioned earlier as sounding the recent re- speaks to every college student as: Screeching Weasel, Fifteen, to tear a husband and wife apart. like "The Boss's," but after some turn of blues I've ever met. The Queers, and the recent "sell "Caught in a landslide/ Earth- careful reconsideration, I now wish popularity. The CD is not the same old outs" Green Day. quakes and high tides/ It's gonna to describe it as resembling the pre- Since "I twelve-bar blues songs with new I think one of my friends be a rough ride/ But I* 11 stay by laryngitical stage where one hope- Can'tQuitYou words. Many of the tracks were summed up Tilt best when he your side. . . No ship coming in/ lessly strains to keep what little vo- Baby" topped written by Rush and others espe- wished he could take the band But we're gonna see it through cal power one has. I'msurewe've the charts in cially for this project. Rush does, home with him and have them play together." ali been through that tough period 1956, Otis Rush has inspired a gen- however, salute afew of his friends whenever he wanted. Well, you Now moving on to the inscru- of life, so let's take a moment of silence and relate. eration of rock and blues musi- and peers, such as Albert King, can't exactly do that. But, if you table phantom of Christian alter- cians, including Eric Clapton and B.B. King, Percy Mayfield, and like punk music and/or are genu- native ... I'm still working on an I suppose if I really had to stretch Mick Jagger. Even Led Zeppelin Ray Charles with songs like inely interested, and have $8 to interpretation of "Crack," by LSU. and find some good points about borrowed a song from Otis for its "Don't Burn Down the Bridge," spend — then I suggest investing "Give me an institution/ So I can Letters from a Paper Ship, I would first álbum. "It'sMyOwnFault,"and "AFool in Tilt' s new álbum (CD) Play Cell. bleed my head/ Don't mind if I lose say that the lyrics aren't too bad. I Many attribute the remarkable For You." Send $8.00 to: Lookout Records, you/1 lost the road you're pickin'/ even found some of them to be longevity of Otis' career to his Although his popularity has had P.O. Box 11374, Berkeley, CA First comes love, then a kiss/ Then poetic, as in "Paper Ship," which smooth voice. Vibrato and a wide high and low points, Otis Rush has 94701. Request: Tilt Play Cell, a crack on the back/ Crack, crack, dealt with the possible goals in life range allows Rush to use his voice always held the sincere respect of Lookout #71. (You should even get crack." and how one can get so close to a free catalog.) as a natural instrument to compli- his contemporaries. His cowboy Gene Eugene of Adam Again is dreams, but not achieve them. ment his outstanding guitar. Like hat and his vibrato have become Grade: A+ getting more pensive by the Some striking words were "just another blues legend, Albert King, legendary in the worldof blues and —Kurt Greif minute. He's got this penchant for another flower that almost Rush plays aconventionally strung rock. This CD has the talent, ex- James Joyceian stream-of-con- bloomed; caught between the frost guitar left-handed, which gi ves his perience, and fresh new ideas sciousness writing which over- and the fire...." Likewise, "The needed to drive Otis Rush to the Brow Beaí: Unplugged flows into his music as well as his Coffee" has the same poetic po- music a unique sound. Various Artists The title track, "Ain't Enough top of the charts again. lyrics. "It's wide and deep/ And tential. "There's an old percola- Alarma Records fast asleep/ Now we say/ Say Comin' In," takes basic blues pat- Grade: A tor sitting by the stove; sitting in ternsandaddsanewedge. Though —Neil Mardis Before I get started, let me goodbye/ Don't cry." Like with the kitchen in Ohio; they can't the song would be exceptional with apologize for the familiar, conver- Joyce's writing, you know some- smell the coffee, because it's gone only Rush's voice and guitar, a Play Cell sational tone of this piece of writ- thing is going on and it makes cold kickin' back-up band takes it one Tilt ing and for the references I will be sense, of a sort, but it takes a lot of However, it really ticked me off step further. A funky jazz organ Lookout Records making to some people and some work to find out exactly what that that great lyrics such as these were sense is. and a rock tenor sax break the ste- unknown al- ruined by singing them in that Top reotypical blues mold. Tilt is a band that I have only bums. I hope I know I said I would say some- 40ish way that I believe was not Other charts, like "A Fool For recently come to know. I first saw you are not too thing about the other artists, but I the original goal of B illy Falcon' s, You" and "My Jug and I," are more them when they opened for Green lost by the time lied. Poor Old Lu is a new alterna- but became one of his top priori- laidbackthan the title track. These Day at The Vic in Chicago in late I finish. tive band I'd like to know better, ties. mellow numbers are far from dull, March of this year. I was so im- Brow Beat and I'm not mentioning Terry Tay- Even though it is evident that I though. The easy tempo and soft pressed with takes a little lor because his ego doesn't need didn't enjoy this CD, I, like your bass lines highlight the soothing them that I tour through the garages, or living it. Undercover has a great song seventh grade gym teacher, will voice that has made Rush famous. went to the rooms or wherever these guy s jam, called "Man O Man," which isn't give it a "C" for effort and for the The band quickly picks up the merchandise of some of the best bands in Chris- on this álbum but you should ali reason that Billy Falcon seems like pace with two tracks that speak of table and tian alternative music—TheChoir, listen to it. Michael Knott and LSU a good man. (Plus, I don't want gospel. "Somebody HaveMercy" bought their DigHayZoose, The Throes, Lost are essentially the same thing, and him to move out of Nashville, just his "Deaf and Dumb" deserves at and"Ain'tThatGoodNews"bring CD while they Dogs, LSU, and Adam Again. when he's beginning to adjust.) least as much time as I devoted to pianos, saxophones, and Rush to- were still playing. I attribute this There's more, of course, but I'll But just to reinforce my honest any of the songs above, but this gether to create a down-South to the energy the band put out while get to that later. Brow Beat is in- feelings, Letters from a Paper Ship review is already way too long. I Baptist Sunday morning feeling. they were playing. They were very credible, not only in its selection didn't float my boat or put the was pleasantly surprised at how Just when you think you've "tight" (as we in the punk world of artists but in the messages of the "ding" in my dingy. call it). Though a hard term to de- songs. Ali of them are pretty som- different my favorite bands heard it ali, Rush adds an old jazz sounded on this álbum—strong, Grade: C band sounding number. "If I Had fine, 1*11 put it in these terms: ev- ber but evoke a sense of affirma- —W. Chanthadouangsy