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Philip Glass
Film Clips
By JEFF GROVE
Philip Class has struck again. The
bad boydarling (depending on your
viewpoint) of both the rock and
classical markets has signed an ex
clusive contract with CBS records. If
Glassworks, his first album for the
label, is any indication, Glass has quite
gotten the better of CBS.
Glass, 44, is a classically-trained
composer who leans to rock, par
ticularly New Wave. A typical Glass
composition has a short introduction
and a short melody which are then
repeated ad nauseum.
The opening cut on the album, im
aginatively titled Opening, features a
piano solo with no real melody. It is
basically a study in how long a listener
can stand to hear two clashing
rhythms played simultaneously.
Michael Riesman's sloppy playing
doesn't help matters.
The other bands on the first side are
just as monotonous. Floe starts prom
isingly enough with a mysterious
French horn passage, but an electric
organ and soprano saxophone soon in
terrupt with the effect of water boil
ing. The whole thing sounds like the
theme of a cheap news program.
Islands features shrill flute and
clarinet solos screeching over a dizzy
ing cello figure.
A piece called Rubric follows to
start off the second side, sounding like
the musicians turned the score for Floe
upside-down and played the resulting
music.
. It is only in the final two pieces that
Glass shows any significant promise in
this new rock style. Facades consists of
a gentle cello theme played under a
tranquil saxophone choir. The last
work. Closing, continues the mood of
serenity with its fragile piano solo.
But two pieces, slightly better than
mediocre, cannot save an album like
this.. None of the pieces really have
conclusions, they simply stop. Glass'
work is undeniably music, yet it is far
from art. In recent interviews, Glass
has said that his music is based on
repetition. But repetition, when over
worked as it is in this album, can
become tiresome. 53
Jeff Grove is the assistant arts editor
for The Daily Tar Heel.
Absence of Malice Somewhat simple,
but still refreshing look at irresponsible
journalism. Sally Field's reporter charac
ter presses for a big story on innocent
Michael Callagher (Paul Newman). For
once, the newspaper takes the rap. Good
food for thought. Directed by Sydney
Pollack.
Lawrence Kasden's film, Body Heat, is
an attempt to revive the genre of film
noire that flourished in the 1940s and
1950s. It's a film about passion and how
it can destroy a man. But it's too close to
the types of films it attempts to emulate.
And because of this Body Heat seems
dated; it's a polished well-made film that
is stuck in a dead genre.
15
Ragtime Possibly one of the best films
of the 1981 Christmas crop. Based on
at.L. Doctorow s best-selling novel, tne
film explores America of the 1910s. Di
rector Milos Forman found the right for
mula lor dudpung Liunutuw iiucicsi
ina narrative, as he tells the story of
( ( Ragtime around three intertwining plots
Executives
(Continued from page 4).
. Mobs, Hutton said, is about getting
mobbed at a concert.
So far the band hasn't had too much
trouble fitting their music into their student
life. However, they said that they had to be
careful and make time to study.
"We play one night on a weekend and
study one," Hutton said. "We don't play dur
ing the week except for really good pay.
"When you come in at 5 on a Sunday
morning, you don't feel like studying, so you
have to work it out But girls have more ef
fect than music," he added.
Hutton said that they don't plan to give up
their studies for music, yet. But they are
ready for the day a contract is offered.
"We've even gotten album covers drawn,"
Sharpe said. "Everything starts out in this red
notebook (he holds the book up), or in
Henry's pad."
The band just recently played at the Sig
ma Phi Epsilon fraternity at UNC, and they
have an idea for their next concert.
. "We'll play at Chapel Thrill for free,"
Sharpe said. "They can save the money and
buy beer for everyone!" f
Jeannie Reynolds is a contributing writer
to The Spotlight
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Spotlight, March 25, 1982