APRIL 28, 1992 THE RETRIEVER / PAGE II The Finest in Black rock Bros)-They're right, you know. might make you sad! Party hearty, (from EYE, page 10) How can you follow Luther Van- dudes! dross up with heavy metal? You If you like kick-ass metal with Heart"), a bunch of songs that can't, not without alienating the plenty of heart and soul straight combine the wah-wah guitarfests of VI03 crowd. from Memphis and New York, pick the 70s with ^Os attitude("Don't However, this album is a pow- this up. NOW. What are you Just Say Peace," "Prisoner In erhouse. It's full of crunchy power waiting for? Babylon," et cetera), and a couple chords, soulful female vocals, a tunes that end up being straight great rhythm section that handles Kelvynator: Refunkanation guitar-driven pop with a few twists both funk and metal with equal ("Can't Live Without Your Love," (Enemy) This band is a one-man alacrity and energy. This is the real project courtesy of Kelvyn Bell, a "I Ain't Low"). soul metal, not Living Colour, and guitarist who played with funk/ Altogether, the result of this if 98 Rock or the Underground had rock band and cult favorites mixed bag is pleasing though open minds, this release would rule. Defunkt. schizoid. For example, just when Unfortunately for them, it's too you think the "in Living Colour" This is full of the good funk. good. The songs don't all talk about Nothing really surprising. A few first track, "I Ain't Low", is fin- sex, drugs and rock n' roll. They screaming guitar lines, the deep ished, it suddenly turns itself into actually write perceptive tunes down snap-pop-and-thud of the a hip-hop instrumental. Weird, eh? about race ("Like A Negro"), This CD isn't a knockout but it breaking up ("Shirt"), and crimes bass guitar, the rhythmic arrythmia delivers the goods, and it's for against kids ("Crack Babies"). of the funky drummer, the shim- genre-busters only. What righteous headbanger would mering hiccupy James Brownian actually listen to songs that talk strum of the funk guitar. Mother's Finest: Black Radio about disturbing issues? Now, now, It's good, not great, and if you Won't Play This Record (Scotti kids, wouldn't want to think, that like funk, pick it up.

Photo by Neil Feather. Performance artist tENTATIVELY a CONVENIENCE uses his head to bring a new experience to UMBC audience members. Hell perform here tomorrow night (April 29) as part of PROGRESSIONS '92. A performance by another name tENTATIVELY a CONVENIENCE comes to UMBC

be a film screening of this artist's become more interested in what Photo: Mark Tucker/1992, c/o Capitol Records. unique work. people actually do than in how they The Cavedogs are from L-R: Todd Spahr, Mark Rivers and Brian Stevens. by Lisa tENTATIVELY a CONVEN- justify it." IENCE is a name Michael Tolson tENTATIVELY a CONVEN- Schlegel has come up with for his stage IENCE will be part of an ensemble Retriever Staff Writer name. He uses it to get people to who will perform their own music think, and to remember him. He's that night. Tolson is the member Are you busy on Wednesday, your typical artist who has the of the group who has a brain Come a long for a Ride April 29? If you aren't, why not go freedom to do what he likes, and tattooed to the top of his bald head. to the Fine Arts Building and check to display his art the way he sees Kon Petrochuk, an art professor out tENTATIVELY a CONVEN- it. here at UMBC, describes tENTA- IENCE. No your eyes are not going He is a man of many talents. TIVELY a CONVENIENCE as whacko. tENTATIVELY a CON- Perhaps the key to appreciating his "someone who looks like a biker." down the Music Street VENIENCE (correctly spelled and work, can be found in a quote from Does this sound interesting to you? lowed up by pleasant melody, RIDE: "Going Blank Again" typeset) is a Baltimore performance his book, How to Write a Resume If it does, then you can delight in (from MUSIC, page 10) giving it a real college rock/ (Sire/Reprise) College darlings of artist. His works include film, Volume II: Making a Good First the fact that admission is free and thoughtful songwriter feel, some- recent years, Ride, step out into video, performance, street art and Impression: "As a person who's the performance is open to the SWEET LIZARD ILLTET: self- times reminiscent of Elvis Costello, more diversified areas of pop music mail art. Included in the show will spent much time thinking, I've public. titled (Warner Bros.) Well, alright. or Nick Lowe even. with this new disc, while continuing Finally, a truly visionary rap/rock to drive their Oxford pop beat with fusion! Sweet Lizard Illtet pound THE CHARLATANS UK: cool, trademark, chorus-laden psy- out emphatic, NYC white boy, rap "Between 10th & 11th" (Beggars chedelic guitars, to the point of vocals over deafening groove rock Banquet) I have heard these grooves stupendous saturation at the close and funk riffs. The unbelievably a thousand times before, but some- of "Leave Them All Behind." Most mammoth, clean and dense produc- . how the Charlatans UK pull it off of the other tracks, including QUESTIONS tion of this aural assault shatters without sounding completely "Mouse Trap" and "Twisterella," genre barriers, emerging as the cliched. They toy with a familiar are unobtrusive guitar j anglers. definitive voice of the angry youth funky drum beat, smother every- "Chrome Waves" starts off with a of America. These bad boys be thing with synthesized, floating Fishbone-like acoustic guitar ABOUT BLOOD? down with the times, wailing on keyboard chords and crisp, guitar strumming that cuts into a PM their instruments like raging ban- jangling, while propelling the tunes Dawn kinda drum groove. Then shees warring with our sick society. with easy going, soft-spoken, warm synthesizer wafts in, laying They hammer a groove down so Church-like pop melodies. Perhaps, the backdrop for the whispery deep, it seems like it ain't never the key to their sound lies in the melody. They stretch out a little too gonna get up again; and then, all deep, spread out mix, which almost New Wavey for me on "Cool Your of a sudden, they come at you from gives one the feeling of soaring Boots," mime XTC, minus the another direction, bigger, heavier, through the clouds. There's a spastics, on "Making Judy Smile," a j awful of chops frothing, ready gorgeous layering of sounds, par- and sing with '60s Simon & to pounce. In a word: intense. ticularly on "Page One." Also, the Garfunkel-like harmonies on "Time arrangements are quite fresh, as Machine," punctuating the melody FIREHOSE: Live Totem Pole unexpected, melodic shifts twist the with throbbing bass. Easy going. EP (Columbia) Though Firehose songs into alternate currents. features what could arguably pass LUSH: "Spooky" (4AD/ for the most crushing rhythm THE SMITHEREENS: "Beauty Reprise) The sweet and sultry vocal section in the music biz (Mike Watt & Sadness" (Capitol) Capitol has ambience of British lovelies Emma and George Hurley, former Minute- just reissued the Smithereens debut Anderson and Miki Berenyi's cot- men rhythm gods), I've never found 5 song effort originally recorded tony voices intoxicates with its the trio's original material to be and released in ^3, then rereleased beauty and charm. But, after listen- nearly as potent as the legendary by the now defunct Enigma ing to this 12 song disc more than Minutemen songs from those Records in "88. I guess this one's a couple of times, I can still barely bygone days of the early ^Os, (with for those of you who missed it the hear distinctions in the melodies the exception of the first Firehose first couple of times around. And from one song to the next. LP, "Ragin' Full On," of course). it's worth it. There are a couple of "Spooky" is strictly for the lithium Well, this 7 song disc, recorded live standard Smithereens love songs user who doesn't want to listen too at the infamous Palomino in Hol- ("Tracey's World," "Some Other hard, or it could be used as an lywood, changes my whole opinion Guy"), a kind of early rock V roll effective non-drug substitute for of the group. Maybe they're gettin' rockabilly swinger, "Much Too those sleepless nights. back into the swing of the times. Much," and the title track, in both They cruise through 5 cool covers, a vocal and instrumental mix, THE DARKSIDE: "Meloma- including Public Enemy's "Sophis- which nods heavily toward the nia" (Beggars Banquet) Here's ticated Bitch," and a killer reinven- Beatles. Extensive band bio notes another UK band marketed for tion of Blue Oyster Cult's "The Red from drummer Dennis Diken gives U.S. college radio. The production And The Black," as well as a couple the Smithereens fan some meaty is full and psychedelic (though the of explosive Watt originals. Funky gossip to chew on. cymbals ring a tad cheesy at times), guitarist Ed Crawford actually with slightly distorted guitar jan- kicks in the distortion a bit at times, THE JESUS AND MARY gling and simple melodies. The to grand effect. Better than any- CHAIN: "Honey's Dead" (Def Darkside have a song called "Tor- thing I've heard from them in years. American) Though I'm not familiar nado," which sounds much more with all of the J&M Chain's past like a light rainfall than any storm Central Maryland Chapter THE CAVEDOGS: "Soul Mar- efforts, I have seen some tunes on I've ever heard, where they repeat tini" (Capitol) While the Cavedogs MTV's 120 Minutes, and this new over and over and over again, "I Blood Services, Chesapeake Region sound much less like the Beatles this disc sounds just like all of the tamer time out, they also seem to be songs IVe heard in the past. Picture got a tornado in my heart." The 4700 Mount Hope Drive lacking just a bit of the punch that if you will, the psychedelic images simplic- ity and repetition of their threaded throughout their previous flashing and pulsating before your song writing puts me to sleep real Baltimore, Maryland 21215 debut CD. Still, many of these eyes in soft blues, pale yellows, and fast, perhaps even more effectively melodies are quite memorable, hypnotic oranges and greys. Cer- than Lush. (301) 764-7000 particularly the chugging rhythm of tainly this is music to zone out on, "Love Grenade," which unmistak- with its easy to take mid-tempo pop BIG CAR: "Normal" (Giant) ably echoes the Beatles' driving grooves, whispery vocals of simplis- This is pleasant enough, youthful, guitars of say, "Taxman," for tic melodies, and the standard, upbeat, classy guitar pop, in the slightly noisy, chorus-washed gui- instance, and "Circus Song," with tradition of groups like Crowded American its incredible, swirling, trippy, post- tars a-janglin' away. Occasionally, psychedelic generation studio the guitars slam into a fervent '60s House. It's not bad at all, but I, Red Cross trickery. My main gripe with this distorted, growling guitar solo, but personally, can't stomach this kind + disc is that when any heaviness otherwise, this is tried and true of music. The title, "Normal," aptly kicks in, it is almost always swal- pseudo-progressive college pop. applies.