Wednesday, June 28, 2000
The University Daily Kansan
Section B · Page 3
Innovative duo plots new course for jazz
By Derek John Special to the Kansan
Despite its name, the Chicago Underground Duo is not a shadowy pair of comic book-inspired crime fighters. This dynamic duo has no underground lair and the only thing they're fighting on their new album, Synesthesia, might be the rigid conventions of the jazz establishment.
Rob Mazurek and Chad Taylor are the Duo. They are part of the Thrill Jockey consortium of musicians who revolve around the label's popular sugar-coated progressive rockers, The Sea and Cake. Accomplished musicians, Mazurek and Taylor are well-versed in the Chicago school of post modern. lazz-inflected electronic music.
This music is exemplified in the lush soundscapes of Tortoise, one of Thrill Jockey's many side projects. It is closely imitated by labelmates Isotope 217, and by rival Bubble Core acts, Mice Parade and The Dylan Group. It has become a contender in the battle over jazz's future direction. As neo-traditionalists headed by Wynton Marsalis weigh in against a variety of experimental and improvisational forms, a new forward-thinking kind of jazz music, relying heavily on electronic sounds like those on Synesthesia, seem to be an increasingly viable option.
The amazing fullness of sound on the album is created by just two musicians. Much of the credit is due to Thrill Jockey John McEntire, one of the masterminds behind The Sea and Cake and Tortoise. Although he is first a drummer, he proves to be just as talented and capable as a sound engineer on Synesthesia.
Another veteran of The Sea and Cake, Sam Prekop, plays a Moog synthesizer on a track, demonstrating his gratitude to Mazurek and Taylor for their previous efforts on his self-titled Thrill Jockey release. But on Synesthesia, Mazurek and Taylor have the spotlight and appear very comfortable under its glare.
True to form, the tracks on the album have very abstract titles, such as "Blue Sparks" from "Her and the Scent of Lightning." But the music presents itself as something special, something different, something very interesting for the ear. Mazurek uses his often-muted cornet, electronics, and "found sound" to construct intricate melodies out of seemingly unstable free improvisations in the tradition of Don Cherry, Archie Shepp, and Miles Davis during his electric years.
Review
Meanwhile, Taylor lays down loose lines of percussion and chimes in on the vibraphone at just the right moments.
Quite a few of the original compositions begin with far-out Sun Ra-influenced bursts of creativity, but fuse seamlessly into equally spontaneous grooves established by the shuffling beats of Taylor's drum kit. Eventually even this sound melts into repetitive figures on the vibes, which then seem to fade into the distance, as if relishing its one-way ticket to the far reaches of the cosmos.
The sixth track, Labyrinth, is especially effective. The first part of the song is filled with Taylor's shimmering solo work on a variety of cymbals and other Eastern-tinged percussion instruments. Then Mazurek's muted cornet subtly weaves a tapestry of complementary pitches, upholding the intentionally icy tone. Below Mazurek's hauntingly beautiful expressions, glides an engaging warm pattern on Taylor's vibraphone that seems attuned to the Earth's orbit through the solar system.
Thrill Jockey bills this debut from The Chicago Underground Duo as "free music for free people, at home with your jazz stacks, works with your dance tracks." Sure, why not? But this music goes even further on its genre-busting excursion. A magnificent example of what happens when open-minded musicians realize the full potential of jazz in the present tense, Synesthesia could, contrary to its name, be the reawakening of the rebirth of cool.
—This album can be heard during Jazz in the morning on KJHK 9.7 F.M. every weekday morning from 6 to 9. The jazz request line is 864-4747.
Lawrence's Mexican heritage
A couple from the St. John the Evangelist church dancers — Los Danzantes de St. John's — performs a dance native to the Veracruz region of Mexico. The dancers perform Friday and Saturday nights at the church's 19th annual Fiesta Mexicana. Photo by Aaron Lindberga/KANSAN
Summer concert tours offer diverse music choices
Associated Press Writer
Bv David Bauder
NEW YORK - Teen favorites "Sync or Diana Ross" ersatz Supremes? Voluble folkie Bob Dylan or foul-mouthed rapper Eminem? Young costumed shock rockers Slipknot or retiring costumed shock rockers Kiss?
Music fans won't lack for choices in what's expected to be a busy summer concert season.
"What you've got is the most diverse concert season in a long time," said John Scher, president of Metropolitan Entertainment, a top Northeast promoter.
For much of the 1990s, veteran rock acts dominated the summer touring season and some promoters worried about whether young musicians had enough appeal to take over. That doesn't seem to be a concern anymore.
'N Sync is selling out stadiums, and Britney Spears is doing well, despite a controversy over how
much she is actually singing in concert. Ricky Martin and Christina Aguilera will be on the road later in the summer, and Nickelodeon is sponsoring a package tour featuring LFO, B Witched and others.
"There are more acts geared to kids," said industry analyst Bob Grossweiner. "Young teens are going to concerts for the first time."
Warped Tour.
There are plenty of other young acts performing in a variety of styles. Eminem, who has ruled the charts this spring, is part of the Up In Smoke package with Dr. Dre, Ice Cube and Snoop Dogg, which promoters say may turn out to be one of the most successful rap tours ever.
Slipknot and Seventend headline the Tattoo the Earth tour, one of several packages in the competitive hard rock field. Green Day and the Mighty Mighty Bosstones are among 20 punk-oriented bands that will race through sets on the
Musicians took in a record $1.5 billion in ticket revenue last year, most of it during the busy summer season, according to Pollstar magazine, an industry trade publication.
"I would not be surprised to see the record gross exceeded this year," said Gary Bongiovanni, Pollstar editor. "We have a healthy economy, a lot of acts out touring, and ticket prices have inched up again."
Ticket prices averaged $43.63 among the 50 most popular tourists last year, a whopping $10 increase over the year before. Prices are still going up, although not as quickly. Bongiovanni said.
"We haven't had any backlash on concert ticket prices," Grossweiner said. "The higher-priced tickets sell out first. People want to be close rather than in the bleachers somewhere."
Punk rockers Blink 182 are going against the grain, selling some of its tickets as low as $15.
In addition to 'N Sync, the Dave
Matthews Band and country singer George Strait are playing some of the summer's biggest shows in stadiums. The Backstreet Boys are expected late this summer or fall.
Metallica is headlinning a brief but big tour with Korn, Kid Rock, Powerman 5000 and System of a Down. Ozzy Osbourne's annual Ozfest features Godsmack, Kittie and Queens of the Stone Age. With AC/DC rattling eardrums and Kiss headlinning a farewell tour, it's a busy hard rock summer.
Despite the youthful competition, plenty of veteran acts are on the road. Among the unusual events: The Who are on another comeback tour, Jimmy Page is continuing his collaboration with the Black Crowes, and former Beach Boy Brian Wilson is performing the band's classic "Pet Sounds" album with an orchestra.
Doubt and Pearl Jam are on the road, and Bruce Springsteen wraps up a yearlong reunion with the E Street Band.
Santana, a hot ticket after his Grammy Awards sweep, is on tour with Macy Gray. Turning, Steely Dan, Tina Turner, Don Henley, No
Then there are the perennials, acts that seem to tour every year but still have a big following: Dylan, the Allman Brothers Band, the Moody Blues and Jimmy Buffett. Nostalgic fans can also hear Def Leppard, Poison and the Go-Go's.
Double bills that should prove popular include the Red Hot Chili Peppers touring with the Foo Fighters, Counting Crows with Live, and Natalie Merchant with Wilco.
Industry analysts say Ross' tour is shaping up as the summer's biggest disaster. It is suffering from spotty ticket sales and terrible publicity, after two original Supremes refused to join because they weren't getting paid enough.
With Lilith Fair shut down, Grossweiner said there were few women singers on the road.