jayplay The University Daily Kansan
IF YOU'RE NOT WATCHING THE GAME...: Tim O'Brien will be playing Saturday night at Liberty Hall. SEE PAGE 3B.
Then
Big hair, acid-wash jeans high tops, shoulder pads: the decade we hate to love
By James Manning Jayplay writer
Fox has come up with a totally rad new series. And although critics are saying "gag me with a spoon," the ratings have proved audiences are more ready than ever to return to the 1980s.
That '80s Show premiered with strong viewership levels for the Fox network, winning its time slot in the key young demographics networks strive to maintain. It is the network's second-highest rated new comedy of the season.
Fox is not alone in its pursuing the '80s for entertainment value. A sense of nostalgia for the decade of slap bracelets and neon mini skirts has people clamoring for everything '80s.
"I think that's because there were cooler things in the eighties," said Sarina Fisher, Derby freshman. "You actually got toys in the cereal box, the cartoons were better...there was better commercialism in the '80s."
Unfortunately, this commercial nostalgia is not always being met with quality product. Last year Twentieth Century Fox released the Mariah Carey vehicle Glitter. While Glitter was supposed to be a hit tribute to the '80s, tepid ticket sales and less-than-glorious reviews led to a quick box office death for the film.
Not to worry. This tribute to the '80s R&B sound is now available on DVD.
Allison Gabbard, Topeka junior, said the '80s itself was a time when she was more experimental with her dressing style.
"In the '80s I wore the neon green socks and fake Birkenstocks — not the real ones, the ones you got at Wal-Mart," she said. "I was not fashionable, I was just there."
While some confusion may be present about what exactly is '80s and what is retro, one common sound is '80s dance music. Many in Lawrence decide to get their '80s fix through retro nights at dance clubs.
"I love 80s dance music, Gaaboard said.
"It's my favorite," Fisher agreed. "Alien Ant Farm's remake shows there's something we're wanting to relive."
Alien Ant Farm recently remade Michael Jackson's late '80s dance jam "Smooth Criminal."
The self-proclaimed "King of Pop" Michael
"I love Madonna and Janet. I think that they are not afraid to change their style, and they are incredibly diverse.I think that they are classy divas altogether."
Allison Gabbard
Topeka junior
"I think that's because there were cooler things in the eighties. You actually got toys in the cereal box, the cartoons were better ... there was better commercialism in the '80's."
Jackson made a comeback himself recently, returning to his '80s sound on the hit single "You Rock My World." Unfortunately, the hit single did not translate into a smash album.
Sarina Fisher
Derby freshman
While many singers from the '80s are making comebacks, some never went away.
Sting, an '80s staple with both his solo work and as a member of rock group The Police, had his first hit single in years with the exotic "Desert Rose." Madonna and Janet Jackson, two dance divas who began their lucrative careers in the '80s, just had two of their biggest hit albums ever.
"I love Madonna and Janet," Gabbard said. "I think they are not afraid to change their style, and they are incredibly diverse. I think they are classy divas altogether."
And who can forget Kylie Minogue?
Well, most people. She is, however, on the charts for the first time since the '80s with the very retro-sounding "Can't Get You Out of My Head." Minogue originally had a hit remake of "The Locomotion" and a hit record with "I Should Be So Lucky" in the late '80s.
Even those who were big '80s singers but have decided to lay low are now writing for contemporary artists. One of last year's biggest hits was the 'N Sync ballad "This I Promise You." It was written by '80s hitmaker Richard Marx.
The excitement and nostalgia forsuch music has led producers into a mad scramble for more pics featuring the '80s music. Also in possible development are a set-in-the-'80s *Grease III* and a second edition of the '80s' tribute *The Wedding Singer*.
While the original Wedding Singer is probably the best known movie with an '80s theme up to this point, other films with '80s themes have done well. Not Another Teen Movie spoofs many teen films from the '80s, and the soundtrack features many '80s pop hits remade by contemporary singers.
Other '80s staples returning to action include polo shirts, Jean jackets, He-Man, Transformers and the mullet.
OK, so the mullet is not coming back. Some things should never return, even if they are from the 80s.
Contact Manning at jmanning@kansan.com. This story was edited by Sarah Warren.
Ignore the guitar, appreciate a different tune
RAWK SNOB
Ask any Tom, Dick or Hard Rock Café marketing executive and they'll tell you that since its conception, the guitar has been the cornerstone of the sound and image of rock and roll. While the basic rock format of guitars and drums quickly grew to embrace a variety of tones and unlikely instrumentation, the guitar has remained the tool of choice on the strength of the fact that Pete Townshend can't windmill a French horn.
But this is 2002, and the time has come for us, the rock-loving community, to ask ourselves: Do chunky barre chords and white-hot guitar solos alone constitute a rock song? Certainly we have matured to the point where we can calmly sit back and appreciate the atonal beepings of a Powerbook and a drum machine, grinning and tapping our toes to beat the band.
Well, for those of you who hate the sound of that as much as I do, here are some recent albums by bands who, although they have turned their backs on the trusty guilt-fiddle, realize the
COMMENTARY
Andy Gassaway agassaway@kansan.com
importance of turning their stacks of beat-to-death synthesizers and duct-taped organs up loud enough to shake the garage walls.
1. Add N to (X) — Add Insult to Injury, 2000. Expanding upon the mile-a-minute four-chord rave-ups of the '60s angriest garage bands, Add Insult to Injury thrives on fat, mangled organ riffs pushed along by nimble live drums. Like the impatient android counterpart of Strawberry Alarm Clock, the bass-heavy grooves are both sensuous and psychedelic, garnished by processed, robotic vocals and the sound of menacing,
barely audible killer bee dronings. With brilliant touches like sampled beatnik flute sputterings, Add N to (X) bring to mind the raucous, endearingly non-virtuoso aesthetic of rock's earlier days, only this time the guitars have been replaced with keyboards set for brainmelt.
2 Tracy + the Plastics - Muscle's Guide to Videonics, 2001. Toss this one on your home stereo, put on your skiniest tie and pretend the '90s never happened. Wynne Greenwood, the new wave performance artist who dons her alter-ego, Tracy, and performs live with two video-projected bandmates collectively known as the Plastics, has created a dance record that's just as enjoyable when you're sitting down. Unabashedly cheesy Casio synthesizer tones simmer and squirm over choppy, fake drums riddled with synthetic hand claps. Tracy's voice is sexy, breathy and desperate, reminiscent of a Double Fantasy-era Yoko Ono minus the primal yowling that earned the latter her often
fractured musical reputation.
3. I Am Spoonbender — Teletwin, 2000. Taking the band's name from noted Soviet psychic Uri Geller, whose telekinetic abilities reportedly enabled him to bend spoons with his mind, I Am Spoonbender metamorphosize from shoegazing mood-rock to straight-ahead punk aggression to just plain weirdness and back again, always keeping the keyboards central to the sound. Though the band sometimes slips into fully technified territory fully consisting of synthesized sounds, this EP's strongest tracks are those that include Dustin Donaldson's live drumming, which add a riveting energy to the driving, paranoid keyboard surges and Brian Jackson's gritty distorted bass lines.
The guitar always will be the undisputed weapon of choice in rock and roll, but even though it's more fun to watch someone grind an axe than tickle ivory, the proof is in the sound, and the sound is rockin'.
LIVE MUSIC CALENDAR
TODAY
Bottleneck, 737 New Hampshire St., Lawrence
Full Feature, Phat Albert, Trump Dawgs
Grand Emporium, 3832 Main St. Kansas City, MO.
Brent Berry & the Roots Crew
Hurricane, 4048 Broadway St. Kansas City, MO. FamousFM, Soccer Mom, Five Dollar Foundation
Coco Loco, 943 Mass. St.
Lawrence
Honeywagon Sturry Ashton
Lawrence
Honeywagen, Slurry, Ashton
Drive
Davey's Uptown Rambler, 3402 Main St., Kansas City, MO. Stop Go Ethic
Jazzhaus, 926 1/2, Mass. St.
Lawrence
JazzUcrin Pocket Space
The Hearers, City Fathers, Tekulvi
Jazz Urchin, Pocket Space
TOMORROW
The Pub, 1727 McGee St., Kansas City, MO.
The Hearers. City Fathers, Tekulvi
Cup & Saucer, 412 Delaware St., Kansas City, MO.
Sky Burial
El Torreon, 31st. & Gillham St., Kansas City, MO.
Sloppy Popsicles -Dr. Gonzo-The Swabbies-A Little Slow.
Starlight Skate Center, 101 SE St. Topeka Bookshop Effiey Diversion 4 0
Ruskabank, Effigy, Diversion 4.0
Grand Emporium, 3832 Main St. Kansas City, MO. Chubby Carrier
Abe and Jake's Landing, 8 E. 6th St., Lawrence Kelley Hunt
Brent Barry & the Roots Crew, 2
1/2 White Guys
Bottleneck, 737 New Hampshire St., Lawrence
Hurricane, 4048 Broadway St.,
Kansas City, MO.
Cyclamatic
The Pub, 1727 McGee, Kansas City, MO.
Jazzhaus, 926 1/2, Mass. St., Lawrence Holstein
Gran Marquis, Regan National Crash Diet
Kansas City Kansas Community College
SATURDAY
Uncle Dirtytoes, Elven Drums,
etc.
El Torreon, 31st. & Gillham,
Kansas City, MO.
JR5539, Confiment
Pirate House, 14th & Kentucky St. Lawrence
curse of lono, bailer, last ride out
The Bone, 1415 Frederick Blvd, St. Joseph, MO.
Full Feature, Shotgun Jenny, & Fatal Candy Machine
Bottleneck, 737 New Hampshire St., Lawrence
Arthur Doge & the Horsefeathers,
Danny Pound
Filling Station, 11515 Hickman Mills Dr., Kansas City, MO. Six Percent, Jeremy's Box
Jazzhaus, 926 1/2, Mass. St.
Lawrence
Lou Denzelly Bond No Lessons
Lisa Donnelly Band, No Lessons
Jilly's, 1744 Broadway St. Kansas City, MO. Fly From August. FamousFM
Fly From August, FamousFM
The Pub, 1727 McGee, Kansas City, MO
Cretin 66 Big Iron, Switch/hitter
Cretin 66, Big Iron, Switch/hitter
SUNDAY
Bottleneck, 737 New Hampshire St., Lawrence
Personal Journeys Tour...Sage Francis, DJ MF Shalem B, Edan the Humble Magnificent, Grand Buffet
Uptown Theatre, 4816 N. Broadway, Kansas City, MO.
Nelly Furtado
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