Newspapers / Daily Tar Heel (Chapel … / Sept. 4, 2003, edition 1 / Page 7
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dhr SaiUj (Tar MM ‘Mission’ rocks; ‘Trance’ trips Dashboard Confessional A MARK. A MISSION. A BRAND. A SCAR. ★★tHt It’s hard to approach Dashboard Confessional’s newest album A Mark. A Mission. A Brand. A Scar. without any bias. First there’s Chris Carrabba, the tattooed, acoustic-strumming emo force behind Dashboard. People are calling him a guitar hero. A guitar hero. A dubious distinction, have no doubt. Then there are those lyrics. 2001’s The Places You Have Come to Fear the Most had its missteps. The So Impossible EP, which arrived soon after, had enough groaners to induce asphyxiation. Here’s a gem from the EP’s “Remember to Breathe”: “Try on my blue shirt/She told me she liked it/She wonders what I’ll wear/She knows just what she’ll wear.” Ouch. The tables might be turned against Carrabba off the bat, but the new album, despite its title, deserves a listen. The first track, “Hands Down,” starts with a strong, low-pitched guitar hook that's an attention grabber. And is that electric gui tar? “Safe from the earth and all the stupid questions:/... ’Hey, did you get some?’/Man, that is so dumb.” Wait, he’s actually being funny? The next track, “Rapid Hope Loss,” features undeniable that’s right, undeniable rocking out. Where’s the whining? The “Blackbird"-gone-wrong acoustic numbers isn’t that all he does? Well, that’s all he did. It’s still Dashboard, but Carrabba's taken his sound in anew, richer direc tion, and the final effect is overly positive. Granted, he’s still no guitar hero, but A Mark. A Mission. A Brand. A Scar, is a more tangible, varied album than previous Dashboard efforts. Acoustic song-lites such as the plucking “Ghost of a Good Thing” are more bearable when spaced with full-voiced numbers such as “Am I Missing,” with its focused, round-style chorus. The final track, “Several Ways to Die Trying,” is a six-minute-plus number that builds to a pounding conclusion, an uncharacteristic end for Dashboard. It’s a good thing. Sometimes it’s difficult to keep Carrabba from his old ways. On “Carry This Picture,” he croons: “And color the coast with your smile/It's the most genuine thing that I've ever seen.” Whoa there, tiger. At least he’s hung up his blue shirt. By Philip McFee ARTS CAROLINA FROM PAGE 5 which Brannock established to gain constant feedback from the various departments, died with Aits Carolina. Brannock also had the benefit of a full-time position. Any attempt to organize Arts Carolina style events such as the Sept. 11 memorial circle of stones will be an added responsibility. “Amy did everything gener ating ideas, creating a response to important issues,” Ketch said. “I don't know how those things will continue. It would take several individuals adding commitment to already overly committed lives.” Even then, without a set budget or full-time leader, combined arts efforts seem like pipe dreams. "Things will be harder because the cohesion and central arts fight is gone,” said Casey Dunn, arts liai son co-chairman. But Arts Carolina’s loss doesn’t spell the end of arts on campus. Fine arts department heads agree that the administration is, in fact, very supportive of the arts and that Arts Carolina is just a casualty of a disastrous economy. Renovations of Old Playmakers Theatre, Memorial Hall and Hyde Hall, as well as ambitious plans for anew Arts Common, remind fac ulty members of Chancellor James Moeser’s love for the arts. “This decision is, in fact, a direct antithesis to (the administration’s) support of the arts,” said Ray Dooley, professor of dramatic art. “Amy was an inspiration, and her loss is great, but there have been attempts to carry forward at least some of her work.” Brannock, however, said the elimination of Arts Carolina is just the start of problems for the arts community. “I don’t know what will happen, (and) I don’t know how much this will affect the arts. It is hard to tell,” Brannock said. “I know this is because of a bad budget, but it also shows that sup port for the arts isn’t what it could or needs to be.” Contact the AdE Editor at artsdesk@unc.edu. Nicholas Payton SONIC TRANCE Look up Nicholas Payton’s latest release, Sonic Trance, on a music Web page, and you’ll find it under “other jazz.” Indeed, it’s not quite fusion, nor is it acid. But egad! it is some thing of an oddity. Don’t expect a clear-cut collec tion of songs, crisply defined. Rather, Sonic Trance is a fog of jazzy ambience an audio haze that absorbs the listener. Payton leads on trumpet, coher ing a band of six without over shadowing any member. Differing from jazz tradition, no one in the band exchanges promi nent solos in the music’s fore ground, instead melting into the music in more subtle fashion. “Fela 1” is one of the album’s finer tunes, showcasing Payton’s versatility- Some sounds are more conventional, relative to the elec tronically synthesized wailing notes at the song’s conclusion. Other cuts lack such a distin guished focal point, giving the songs the feel of a collage. The tracks —some only a minute long, others running together or repris ing tunes from earlier in the album give a similar quality to Sonic Trance as a whole. In addition, the record is surpris ingly synthetic and electronic in tex ture, as if it were a remixed classic. Since the album is seemingly postmodern, a little discernment is necessary to avoid overlooking any of its underlying components like its array of drum work. A synthetic, distinctively hip hop beat lays down the frame at the onset of “Praalude,” the album’s opening song. These beats carry over into other tracks, sometimes laced with salsa-inspired conga percussion, straying from orthodox jazz. At other points, the snare is hard hitting, more like rock than jazz. Yet tying it back to the classics is the retention of the loose, shuffling flex ibility of the instalment. The only exception is Pavton’s scatting on the song “Shabba Un- Ranked,” the vocals low and gruff in Louis Armstrong tradition. Aside from such nods to his masters, Payton takes a definite step forward on Sonic Trance. —The compositions are unique, and their perspective due to a production quality that’s modern but at the same time rustically grit ty is novel. It would be shortsighted to call the album anything less than pro gressive. By Brandon Whiteside to Shop If ] LOOKOUT v 10. Find great clothes and shoes. 9. Outlet prices on the labels you love. 8. Score on sexy club wear, novelty tops & loungewear. HR 7. Low price on low-rise jeans. % I 6 Stuff for him too. / jfc w 5. Quicker than ordering from catalogs. * 4 Get more for your parents money. 3. Only five minutes from campus* H 2. Prices so low, forbidden to H advertise famous brands. ■ l Look good & get lucky. Elliott Road s’ Franklin St, Chapel Hill I next to Whole Foods) • 933-3003 j .i Visit us at: www.lookoutcasuals.com ij tw Store Hours: Mon-Sat 10am-Bpm • Sun 12-6 pm La Get $5 off your next purchase of SSO. Simply clip this ad and present it with your student ID. V (Limit one discount per customer. Offer expires 9/20/03). Diversions Two High String Band INSOFARASMUCH When music is doing its job it finds a habitat —a place for it to nestle its notes between the moments of our lives and highlight the mundane pleasures of life. The band works pastorally with its simple, sun-soaked bluegrass, creating a sound on Insofarasmuch that would accompany smoothly a few old friends sipping cheap beer on a lazy afternoon. The Austin-based quartet, con sisting of two guitars, stand-up bass and mandolin, relies on tight arrangements, solid playing and stunning instrumental work to define its sound. The group isn’t pushy with its movement through out the album. Instead, the mem bers find simple grooves and let their sleepy style float comfortably. The album follows a trend of skipping between instrumental cuts and simple lyric songs. The title track opens it by pas sively forcing the listener into the album’s temperament with a repe titious round that manages never to become monotonous. The song finds a hypnotically beautiful melody line that slides you straight into the “Bunkhouse Blues,” an old time cowboy song that isn't afraid of modernity. After hearing bluegrass legend David Gasman’s mandolin grace “Sonny's Ride," it seems apt that his former partner the late Jerry Garcia would also make some sort of guest appearance. At the beginning of “Alabama Blues,” Jerry’s voice appears from six feet under. The truth is in the liner notes. Billy Bright, the mandolin player, is able to fool the listener with his vocal similarity to G. . 'a. The uncanny resemblance st: ih.es espe cially hard on tracks like “Alabama Blues,” which seems to be missing from the Grateful Dead’s catalog. The only major shortcoming of the album is the Merle Haggard cover “Somewhere Between.” The song sounds like a mildly inebriated country song, but the lyrics are a sloppy stupor that wan der the pages of prepubescent love notes. Though the lyrics don't feature much cerebral wordplay, “You Can't Run Away From Your Feet" induces a chuckle by pointing out the obvious and works as an apol ogy for the previous lyrics. Two High String Band would resound softly around picturesque days if everyone had outdoor speakers and didn’t denounce bluegrass because of stigmas. By Kemp Baldwin Tennessee-bred rockers blend garage, whiskey BY MICHAEL PUCCI ASSISTANT ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT EDITOR Let’s just get this out of the way right now Kings of Leon’s Youth and Young Manhood might be not only the most accomplished debut of the year, but also one of 2003s finest albums by anyone, period. It’s difficult to imagine many other bands recording with the same measure of complete confi dence and with an arsenal of songs as potent as these. Kings of Leon look and sound like a quintessential classic rock band. They’ve absorbed the semi nal music of The Band, Creedence Clearwater Revival and Tom Petty, and they’ve created something that manages to sound entirely unique in contemporary rock. They haven't seen the inside of a barber shop in some time, either. The band is comprised of four Followills: three brothers and a first cousin. The brothers’ father was a Pentecostal evangelist in Tennessee. Their exposure to reli gion, combined with a steady diet of Southern rock throughout child hood, shine through here. The album opens with the dizzy ing three-minute blast “Red Morning Light" and never lets up. offering continuos sturdy rockers, with one outstanding exception. “Trani,” the album’s centerpiece, is the sole ballad, and it’s an absolute stunner. Featuring Caleb SHBSsSSQI WKS3HM Turtle Wbere cold beer ai)d good friends njeet! The Thirsty Turtle Monday-Thursday 7pm-2am onn na ( l aroma 2018 East Franklin Street Friday & Saturday 7pm-2:3oam win at the Chapel Hill, NC 27514 Sunday closed Thirsty Turtle (919) 942-0033 immG f ) for a part-time job or internshi^^^ University Career Services can help! Register with UCS to view on and off-campus job/internship listings and to have your resume available for referral to employers at our website: http://careers.unc.edu V Please call, visit our website or drop by with any questions. University Career Services The Wendy P. & Dean E. Painter, Jr. Career Center I 219 Hanes Hall , i ucscwunc.edu THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 4, 2003 MUSIC KINGS OF LEON YOUTH AND YOUNG MANHOOD Followill’s most emotional vocal perfonnance (odes to transvestites are usually conducive to such moments of inspiration), it’s the kind of song the Rolling Stones once were able to turn out effort lessly, like “No Expectations” or “Wild Horses.” Incapable of staying mellow for too long, the Followill Four follow with “California Waiting,” a perfect, rollicking single that would have ruled the airwaves 30 years ago. It’s a breathtaking one-two punch that would be the high point of most other albums. The appeal of Youth and Young Manhood, however, is that such songs are merely par for the course. Caleb’s drunken vocal approach, which channels Tom Waits, is cer tainly an acquired taste. For the most part, his occasionally indeci pherable singing is endearing. Only on “Spiral Staircase,” the album’s lone outright failure, do his vocals become overbearing, as he screams nearly every lyric into oblivion. But it’s a small misstep on an otherwise wildly promising debut. Ultimately, the spirit of the moan album, and the band, lies in its greatest, final song, “Holy Roller Novocaine.” Beginning only with 16-year-old Jared Followill’s bass and brother Nathan’s drumming, the song builds up, adding cousin Matthew’s electric guitar, luring the listener in until it launches into its anthemic chorus, “Lord’s gonna get us back/Lord’s gonna get us back, I know, I know.” Written here, those might not seem like revelatory words, but in the context of this album, it’s enough to convert even the most staunch nonbelievers. Youth and Young Manhood would have been a great success in the early 19705. We can hope only that Kings of Leon can achieve similar acclaim today. Contact theASfE Editor at artsdesk@unc.edu. 7
Daily Tar Heel (Chapel Hill, N.C.)
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Sept. 4, 2003, edition 1
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