THURSDAY, APRIL 18,2002 ENTERTAINMENT THE UNIVERSITY DAILY KANSAN = 3B RAWK SNOR Rock lovers spread joy on Internet Mass-marketed music scenes come and go, but despite the epitome of ironic humor that confessions of guilty pleasures have become as of late, there are still those whose mania extends light years beyond any half-hearted rendition of "Rock You Like A Hurricane" performed along with a car radio on the way to a Weezer concert. MUSIC COMMENTARY And no, they aren't limited to guys wearing Kingdom Come shirts who go to Primus shows to dig "the Geddy Lee influence." Chances are, they are sitting next to you, preparing your food, doing your taxes and reliving bygone musical mutations safe in the arms of the Internet. Here are some sites that indulge in a fascination with music scenes long-thought deceased, thriving in their digital rest home. www.métal-sludge.com — For the rocker who still dreams of donning some Aqua Net and pouting in promo photos with Bret Michaelis or perhaps visiting Andy Gassaway agassaway@kansan.com the Renaissance Festival with Ronnie James Dio, Metal Sludge is a leather-clad sanctuary of '80s rock. In addition to including regular columns and features, the site features the highly entertaining 20 Questions section, in which relics of hair-metal's heyday must face a barrage of scathing, often hilarious inquiries. Where else do you expect to find out what kind of animal Nikki Sixx would most like to have sex with? www.gepr.com — The Gibraltar Encyclopedia of Progressive Rock is an extensive collection of information on the riffing nobility of the '70s and beyond. While it's true prog's not dead — I once saw it spray-painted on the side of a Guitar Center — it's triple-LP producing, 15-minute song-composing royalty, such as Yes, King Crimson a n d Topeka's o w n Kansas are given extensive biogra- phies and discographies among the endless lists of progressive bands formed over the past 30 years. With a companion Web 'zine appearing regularly alongside the encyclopedia, Gibraltar is the ultimate place of convergence for those who never felt a song could be properly executed in three minutes. www.shoegazing.com - While kids like me were busy pining for a copy of Nevermind back in the early '90s, an isolated group of British lads and lasses, largely associated with the Creation label, were churning out dreamy, feedback-saturated noise rock that concentrated more on otherworldly sound than conventional verse/chorus/verse song structures. The downside is that they were reportedly boring as hell to watch, preferring to stare at their shoes while they performed, concentrating on strangling primal tones from their instruments. Shoegazing.com commemorates this fleeting musical offshoot with a list of the genre's most prominent bands, including Curve, Ride and My Bloody Valentine, complete with links to related band Web sites. Like the shoegazers themselves, Shoegazing.com is confused and hazy at times, with links to pointless top 10 lists and humor that isn't funny. If nothing else, it's the best-organized and best-looking shoegazing site on the Internet. With this cornucopia of depraved fan sites littering the Internet, refuge is secured for those looking to escape into music's good old days — or at least the "close enough" old days. Turkey looks for mate in video store aisles ODDITIES BATAVIA, N.Y. — A turkey recently decided to take a turn as a critic, attacking movies in a video store—and taking particular aim at hunting videos. Nancy Arena arrived at her video store 30 miles east of Buffalo last week to find the front window smashed and feathers and movie cases scattered. She called police, and when the officer arrived at the store, he flushed a young tom turkey out of the science fiction section. An animal control officer eventually took the 12-pound bird. Arena said the turkey bashed into the hunting videos first and left some droppings on them. Spring is mating season for turkeys, and wildlife experts say the video-store crasher may have been looking for a feathered companion among the video displays. Firefighting couple wed in full protective gear MCKEES ROCKS, Pa. — This wedding ceremony was hotter than most wedding nights. MeKees Rocks firefighter Amy Connolly and Pittsburgh firefighter Victor Cushanick were married Tuesday night at Connolly's fire hall in their "turn-out" gear — the protective clothing worn while fighting fires. Connolly's only concessions were to wear a veil instead of a helmet and to carry flowers. Connolly, 32, met Cushanick on the Internet several months ago while chatting about - what else - fire fighting. The Associated Press shoes for - Who is Steve Madden? And why are all his shoes on display at Arensberg's? How many black shoes can one girl - What is upstairs @ arensberg's? all - There is no question that the coolest men's shoes in the world come from Spain and they are called Camper. If someone says "Diesel" and instead of fuel or a big truck, you think of shoes, then you need to be shopping at Arensberg's Shoes - I don't shop downtown just for the great stuff. For me, it's a social activity. I see all my friends there. Shopping with men is no fun. They think shopping means buying something and going home. They don't understand that shopping is a social activity. - If you don't have new flip-flops, then spring hasn't really started for you. - Merrell shoes aren't just footwear they're a way of life. Rocket Dog shoes and sandals for women - sometimes you just have to let the big dog run. 623 Vermont 749-5067 Reaction shoes by Kenneth Cole from the streets of New York to Mass. street. - Providing visual excitement for over 110 years ARENSBERG'S SHOES 825 MASSACHUSETTS in Downtown Lawrence 843-3470 Check us out online @ www.arensbergshoes.com *Must be present to win "Always the 'Best' Specials, Always the 'Most' Fun!" UNFLOWER OUTDOOR & BUSE Room Service Not Included! Great tents for your next adventure...at rates cheaper than a hotel room! Tents starting at just $140! (755) 843-5000 804 Massachusetts St. * Downtown Lawrence * (785) 843-5000 4/br 2/bth Apartments Available for Fall 2002 - Furnished & Unfurnished Apt. available Full Facility Kitchen - Fully Equipped Kitchens - Private Balconies & Patios - Off Street Parking - Gas, Heat and Water - 24 hr. Emergency Maintenance - On - site Manager Call or stop in TODAY for private showing Mon.-Fri. 9am-5pm Sat.10am-4pm Sun.1pm-4pm Interested in engineering, math, or science graduate studies? Want to make a difference in k-12 education? Join the Authentic Teaching Alliance or Adventure Engineering at the University of Oklahoma! $21,500 Stipend + Full Tuition & Fees ADVENTURE ENGINEERING www.coe.ou.edu/ata Engineering based curriculum for middle school math and science www.coecs.ou.edu/aeweb Don't miss this opportunity! The University of Oklahoma is an equal opportunity institution NEED MORE TIME? WESCOE PUBLICATION CENTER HAS EXPANDED THEIR HOURS AND IS NOW OPEN FROM 7am -10pm GIVE JUDY OR PAUL A CALL I Wescoe Publication Center 1520 Wescoe 864-3354 ·