DTH Omnibus Page 5
Thursday April 4, 1991
IMUiC
The death of mainstream?
r--v ig iaDeis can sometimes De
I O ) gd really good. And as
f - i .. orv . i r
F ) keting the eclectic little guy
heightens, as well as bright
ens the eyes of our music industry's
hungry overlords, it makes me happy.
Hold your tomatoes, but I'm glad
that many of the same kids who have
grown up swearing to Janet and
Michael Jackson, the New Kids, Ma
donna and any other Top 40 (over)
night-lite are familiar with names like
R.E.M. and Sonic Youth. It's healthy,
it's important. It's subversity that now
sells! For once, "Yeehaw music indus
try!" Maybe, just maybe, kids who buy
Bad English, Damn Yankees and The
Rembrandts (doesn't Jon Waite play
in all three?) records will happen upon
a nifty looking album by Amherst,
Massachusetts' angst-rocking Dino
saur Jr. Why? Because it's got Warner
Brothers' muscles to penetrate the
vast advertising outlets: from making
billboards in New York city, to half
page ads in RoUingStone to ornate PR
displays in Record Bars across the
land!
The subversive fury in J Mascis'
musical genius now has the chance to
hit little Johhny Jones in Armpit,
Oregon, j ust like Vanilla Ice did. Alas,
the American way has reached in
ward, happening upon the 'alterna
tive' as its freshest ploy, its newest
and most progressive formula to mass
success. Massive push massive
accessibility probable mass con
sumption. And the wheel turns ...
The aforementioned Mascis,
founder, writer, singer, guitarist and
overall executor for Dinosaur Jr. as
well as blatant artiste nouveau, is
likened to Evan Dando (Lemonheads)
and Paul Westerberg (The
Replacemenets).
This is not only because their
personally conceivedspearheaded
bands have respectively and respect
fully devolved into solo affairs with
the same 'group' name, making their
hard-nosed, gritted approach to mu
sic and lyrics that much more fitting,
but because they have now "made it"
in the business, at least in terms of
major-label status. Lemonheads are
now on Atlantic Records and The
Replacements are on Sire. (See the
LESS TALK.
MORE ROCK,
OMNIBUS
N.C.
CRAFTS
Gallery
212V.r.1ainSt.
Carrboro, NC 27510
(919) 942-4048
Layton Croft
record review of Dinosaur Jr.'s newest
album in this issue of Omrubusl )
This new movement has clouded
the terms "college radio," "college
music," etc., because former indie
alternative giants are gettingbig-hitter
boosts, obviously not to these once
'closet' now 'everywhere-you-turn'
artists' displeasure. Hey, wouldn't you
rather eat lobster than Spaghetti-O's
before a show ? Or travel delux-o coach
than push your not-yet-paid '73 Ford
van to the club?
Okay, if you're the die-hard in fa
vor of small-label do-it-yourself-all-the-way-even-if-you-never-play-an-arena
bands, consider this: beyond
the photo sessions, PR blitzkriegs,
covers of Esquire (or Tiger Beat for that
matter) and Hollywood celeb-bashes,
what is the art at stake here? The art?
Every true music fan's deep-down,
grace-saving, cross-all-your-fingers-and-toes
hope is that the answers are:
inspiration, creation, expression,
message and the sweetest of all, pas
sion! Is that fool's gold? Damn, I hope
not.
In fact, after seeing now world
huge Perry Ferrel, Jane's Addiction's
nipple-pierced, cross-dressed, angry,
angry young lead singer and statement
maker all over MTV, I smile inside.
For heaven's sake, he smoked dope on
stage in concert in North Carolina
the same state where Jesse Helms is
employed. Gee whizz, scratch your
head, roll your belly and think about
it.
I don't necessarily condone his act
but I applaud the system, whether its
reasoning for aligning the likes of
Perry to that of INXS in terms of big
bucks support be "free reign to artists
who pull in the big green," or "free
reign to the artists," it is good.
Evidence is making the latter op
tion a stronger case to argue these
9
ALEC BALDWIN
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days, when anti-establishment, First
Amendment expression and truth
searching albeit sometimes militant
movements, whether they are surface-sham
crusades or born, bred and
vein-flowing convictions, are more
accessible due to the uprooted under
ground growth privy so long to only
college hipsters and new-generation
beatniks.
This is not to say a typified artist
has always been granted leeway to
deviate from the norm, explore the
craft, sport neon skin or cut off his
her ears, but for such folks to cut into
the pop market in a subtle tour de
force, is groundbreaking, revolu
tionary and absolutely wonderful!
Sure, the Beatles, the Doors, Andy
Warhol, Led Zeppelin, the Sex Pistols,
David Bowie, Ozzy Osbourne and
many others were controversy
spawning radicals who cashed in big
on the pop market, but they came in
swallowable doses. Speaking of, most
of those people reached 'pop' status
when most of America was dosing
anyway.
So where does such a seeming
open-mindedness towards different,
un-mainstream music come from? Are
we willing to spend our increasingly
tighter bucks on the newest trend
we've been dished (on a silver plat
ter) , or are we, dare we say, culturizing,
possibly multi-culturizing?
Well I say, with my optimistic cap
firmly in place, that regardless of
reasons, it is good.
In fact, seize this opportunity, all
you intelligent though starched
Americans. If the food is on your
plate, give it a nibble. (You can always
spit it discreetly bach into your nap
kin ... )
So, to all the big-labels looking for
and promulgating delightful and
needed change, if the market is there,
hey, bring the weirdies, wackies,
uglies, leftists and sub-poppies. Put
'em on your CBS, Warner Brothers,
Geffens, Artistas. Yo, bring the noise:
it makes for a much more cultured,
less calculated culture.
Lari'ttTiKii. - J
KIM BASINGER
Quite possibly the only
reason to visit N.C. State
"They'll be howlin' this weekend
at N.C State. It's a springtime soi
ree, a mid-semester melee or maybe
just another outrageous weekend at
State! Nevertheless, Wolfstock is
back and will feature five major
hands, fun for everyone andhopefully
good weather for all.
Wblfctock is a clever name, de
rived from the mega-music festival
that occurred in New York a long
time ago and featured music, hippies
and such, Well now, in 1991,
Wolfstock (getting the other part of
its name from State's lovely rabid
mascot) will include performances,
from recording artists Fishbone, In
formation Society, Maggie's Dream
and two local cover bands.
The six-hour concert is this
Sunday, April 7 But for more action
and fun, there will be a Softball
tournament on FridayandSaturday. .
Ticket holders may watch both
games, but sorry, the teams have
already been picked Tickets for the
weekend cost $5 for State students
and $8 for the privileged others.
Also, all proceeds raised from the
softball games will go toward buying
new uniforms for State's baseball
team. How nice.
You must be 2 1 years old to drink
alcohol, which is permitted on the
Intra Mural fields where the concert
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with purchase
of 18 hole green fees
with this ad through April 30, 1991
Limit 18 holes per person per day
18 hole public course
Complete line of golf equipment
Driving range, Lessons available
outfjiMtl
Golf
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will take place. The alternate rain
site is Reynold's Coliseum.
The concert itself should offer a
variety of musical sounds from the
funkthrash of Fishbone, to the in
telligent techno-attack of Informa
tion Society to the Lenny Kravitz
Terrence Trent D'ArbyJames
Brown-meshed sound of Maggie's
Dream. The two cover bands will
most likely play songs everyone al
ready knows, and may have heard
hundreds of times before.
N.C. State student Brian Garrett
said this will be his second year
attending Wolfstock and he's really
looking forward to it. "It's nice not
to have to worry about upcoming
exams," Garrett said. "It
(Wolfstock) is a nice release."
So if you have nothing planned
for the weekend, chug on over to
State in Rale igh and howl your lungs
out at Wolfstock.
But don't forget a valid ID., a
neon cooler thermo-nuclear-pro-tection
multi-colored sunglasses
that come with a free elasto-strap,
your short shorts and a partyin'
spirit!
Garrett said it best: "Picture
5,000 college students sitting in the
sun getting drunk and listening to
music.
-Layton Croft
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Directions:
From NC 54 ByPass 0
take Jones Ferry Rd. to p
Old Greensboro Rd. n
12.5 miles to NC 87. !f
Turn right on NC 87 U
(north) for 9 miles to Q
blinking light. Turn n
right for 1 .2 miles on -Boywood
Rd. to sign.
Call for tee-times n
942-0783 o
STARTS
TORIORROW!
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