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Features

FEATURES

Orange soundtrack is juicy

Dan Julian
January 14, 2002

On this soundtrack, it rains when it pours. The good songs are amazing and perfect for a mix tape, whereas the weaker songs are terrible. With great numbers by the Foo Fighters, 12 Rods, Pete Yorn and Creeper Lagoon,this record is one of the early forerunners of “best soundtrack of 2002.” The only downfall is that it is more directed toward the pop-ridden theme of the MTV generation than connoisseurs of quality music. It features “Butterfly” by Crazy Town, the most annoying song of 2001, along with a weak tune by Bad Ronald and an Offspring song, “Defy You,”which sounds more like Limp Bizkit than decent alternative rock. “Everything’s Cool” by Lit is nothing out of the ordinary for the band, while Cake’s piece of the pie tastes very good. Perhaps the best part of the disc are the two great songs by Brian Wilson, “Lay Down Burden” and “Love and Mercy,” which both hum with the easy going sweetness of Wilson’s intrigue. Phantom Planet also contributes “California,” a great song accompanied by a tickling of the ivories. Despite some of the songs shooting it in the foot, this record shines more than it dulls and is saved by contributions from some of the best names in rock.

FEATURES

Creole Gallery to showcase folk

Dan Julian
January 11, 2002

Folk duo Mustard’s Retreat has a reputation for being warm, accessible and upbeat during its performances. “That’s not to say they’re lightweight,” said Meegan Holland, concert presenter for the Creole Gallery, 1218 Turner St.

FEATURES

Hackman shines in Royal Tenenbaums

Drew Harmon
January 11, 2002

All right - it’s time for this critic to become one of many to get in line to kiss the butt of writer-director Wes Anderson and his movie “The Royal Tenenbaums.” But before you think I’ve gone soft, I’m gonna start out by being negative.

FEATURES

Electronics hot sellers this season

Leslie Escobar
January 11, 2002

The days of receiving Legos and in-line skates as gifts during the holidays are long gone, as technology continues to dominate consumer interests.And as they have for the past few holiday seasons, electronics continued to be big sellers at major outlets such as Best Buy and Circuit City throughout December.Palm Pilots, DVD players and video game consoles were top sellers for both stores.“We had a very good December,” said Circuit City Stores, Inc. spokesman Jim Babb.

FEATURES

Networks do the midseason drop

Drew Harmon
January 11, 2002

For some people, nothing sounds better than curling up on the couch with a loved one, some snacks and watching ... “The Tick?”Unfortunately for that show, which will be canceled after its eighth episode, it is just one of many that has gotten the ax and will be replaced by another new show.Other shows that have found themselves without a home are “Emeril,” “Thieves,” “Citizen Baines” and “Inside Schwarz.”The shows are also part of a trend of declining viewership for most of the major networks.

FEATURES

Resolution solution

Leslie Escobar
January 11, 2002

For some, the dawn of a new year doesn’t mean time to stop smoking or start running every day. Rather, it’s just a continuation of the party the night before. Economics senior Jeremy Magruder said he fits into this category of not making promises that will inevitably be broken. “I stopped making them when I was about 15,” he said.

FEATURES

Orange County hits theaters

Drew Harmon
January 11, 2002

If you’re up for a movie this weekend, your best bet for a new flick for some laughs will most likely be “Orange County.” Starring Jack Black, the man who helped save “Shallow Hal,” and who also put a good number of the laughs into “High Fidelity,” not to mention his hilarious musical musings with rock gods Tenacious D, the movie should provide quite a bit of entertainment. The movie involves Black’s character’s brother, who discovers that his high school counselor sent in the wrong transcript, thus making him ineligible for his dream college, Stanford.

FEATURES

Controversial play finds stage

Tanee Elston
January 10, 2002

“Breaking the Code,” has found a home in the Lansing School District.Earlier this month, the Catholic Diocese canceled the play’s run at Lansing Catholic Central High School due to disagreement with its gay themes and the Lansing Civic Players’ affiliation with the Triangle Foundation, a gay rights organization. “Breaking the Code,” will now open Jan.

FEATURES

Weekend Guide

Friday• The Campus Center sponsors the Hot Seat Comedy Tour performances at 10:15 p.m.

FEATURES

Autos advanced

Detroit - Ted Edginton is excited to go to the North American International Auto Show, as he is every year.

FEATURES

Solo artist keeps new album honest

Honesty is extremely important in music, and Tony Melonakos handles the task well on his second release and debut full-length album “Beginning the Victory.” The album, written and performed by the general business administration and pre-law freshman, focuses on the tragic and sometimes comedic value of a young adult’s reality. Most of it is Melonakos and his acoustic guitar, and among the topics he sings about are idolization of John Cusack, through the eyes of a lonely bench-warmer on a basketball team and obsession with the female form. None of it is distasteful, but sometimes the lyrics are too obvious or too predictable. “Night And Day Mares” is a powerful ballad, molding heart-wrenching verses with whimpering strings, while the opening track, “Brad Pitt,” features Melonakos singing about wanting to be the acclaimed actor, while a woman counterpart sings about “wanting to get a piece” of the star.

FEATURES

Pagano disappoints with teen tunes

Dan Julian
January 9, 2002

Move over Britney. Nevermind, just let this little lady chill just outside of your spotlight, because she’s trying. Lindsay Pagano molds the country-tinged style of Leanne Rimes with the harmonization effects of Britney Spears or Christina Aguilera. This album is basic teeny-bopper sing along happy music.

FEATURES

Bands third album shows variation

Dan Julian
January 9, 2002

Power chords and uneducated guitar solos galore - meet the Deadlines. On this record, the band incorporates the fun, somewhat grown-up aspect of rock ’n’ roll while grasping its straight-up punk rock roots. The sexy, swaggering vocals of Shaun Sundholm is obvious on “I Want a Stalker,” somewhat familiar of the late Joey Ramone, but not as good. Most of the chords are easily accessible in nearly every punk rock bands’ Palm Pilots, but it doesn’t seem to matter.

FEATURES

Mushroomhead releases decent trend record

Dan Julian
January 9, 2002

Based on the album cover, it’s possible to stereotype these crazy cats as Slipknot wannabes. That pretty much sums it up. Both bands make generous use of its respective artilleries - loud guitars, pinpoint drumming and nightmarish vocals. And the masks?

FEATURES

Until Sunday to play at Ricks

Dan Julian
January 9, 2002

Big Tuna didn’t waste any time adding Until Sunday to its roster. The record label put the Detroit-based band under its wing almost immediately after the band graduated from high school in 1998. “We had wanted to pursue our career in music so we checked out MPA/Pearl Sound (recording studio) in Canton,” said Josh Brooks, lead singer and rhythm guitarist.

FEATURES

Celebrity anchors lack credibility

Someday I will turn on the television and flip to a random news network to find out the week’s weather forecast and see Ricki Lake talking about cold fronts and lake effect snow. And next to her will be Mark-Paul Gosselaar from “Saved by the Bell” talking about America’s latest crisis overseas. Think it’s not possible?

FEATURES

Under Construction to play acoustic set tonight

Dan Julian
January 8, 2002

Under Construction was hard at work during winter break, closing down its operation to bang a new bolt into its machine. After switching guitar players, bass player Ryan Ruiz said the band spent much of the past couple of weeks breaking in its new guitarist. The band will perform an acoustic set tonight at Rick’s American Cafe, 224 Abbott Road. “We’ve been trying to make the transition as smooth as possible,” Ruiz said.