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Sting captures souls I in arousing concert I By JOHN GLANCY Staff Writer Carolina Coliseum became a sensory feast of sights and sounds Saturday night as Sting took the stage in support of his Soul Cages tour. "I think it's (my) job as an artist to make every basketball arena as infimafp. an nrrasinn . as I can." Stinff said recently in Rollins Stone. He kept his promise. The audience was an even mixture of the "thirty-something" and "twenty-something" crowds, with an obvious lack of hairspray in the atmosphere. The stage was interesting ? spartan by rock standards: a hand-painted backdrop and abstract geometric stage props, highlighted by an intricate light show. The absence of flashy distractions allowed the audience to focus on the music. Concrete Blonde opened the show with a dynamic and powerful performance. Their sound was clear (which is rare for an opening act), and Johnette Napolitano's voice was inspiring. Vinx took the stage next and almost stole the show. As a solo performer who Sting discovered in L.A., he knows how to entertain with only a commanding voice, an African hand drum and a wry sense of humor. Vinx insulted Clemson people and won the audience. He was funny, but his music was his real talent. Sting took the stage around 9 p.m., and the crowd went predictably crazy. Accompanied by an impressive lineup of musicians consisting of Dominic Miller on lead guitar, David Sanchez on keyboards and L.A.'s studio drum god Vinnie Colaiuta, Sting strapped on his fretless bass. The band then launched into the new hit single "All This Time" from The Soul Cages. The band covered three more songs from the new album, including a g rocking hip-hop version of "Jeremiah Blues" and then Billy Wilder's * "Ain't No Sunshine When She's Gone. ? Finally, the moment that everyone was waiting for arrived. Knowing ? what the audience's response would be, he announced with British cheekiness that he was taking requests. Eight thousand-plus voices howled "Roxanne" in unison and shook the building. The band got a chance to stretch and show their chops, even slipping into a tangential reggae version of the song for a chorus. It's good that beer wasn't sold, in light of the amount of sips required to get through "Roxanne," though I did see some people pretending with their sodas. The rest of the show was a mixture of Police tunes and songs from Sting's three solo albums. The band was tight and covered all of the tunes with creativity, but they should have been in the spotlight more. "Purple Haze" was jammin' (though I'm partial to Voodoo Chili's version). The encore was a moving rendition of "Fragile," but something a little less docile and more energetic, "Demolition Man" for example, would have been nice. Sting has done well to return to his rock'n'roll roots by going back to a smaller band. His bass chops were together, his voice never sounded better, and there was a level of energy that made me feel like my money was well spent L_ fne queeN of comet BeRflce B6RR Wednesdag, march 6 $1.00 urith student ID $3.00 for general public Rh Ballroom 8:00 pm This program is paid for, in part, by student activities fees. 1Operation Desert Cl< | "(I job well don Eric Glenn/The Gamecock ting mesmerizes the coliseum audience at his The Soul Cages >ur, which hit Columbia Saturday. WESTSIDE WOMEN'S SERVICE OB/GYN CERTIFIED PHYSICIAN 'Abortion &. Counseling Services - Ask \,y about the new, more comfortable, c up-to-date method m/. 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Everybody has their own tastes, especially in music. Of course, some people do love her music and the way she sings, myself included. On the other hand, there are some people who hate her because of her unique look. So she shaved her head! Not a day goes by that at least one woman is not tempted to cut her hair off. It was that kind of c day, coupled with the image her c managers told her she should have t (mini-skirts, high-heeled boots and 1 long hair), that made her shave her c head. \ However, much of the controversy is over what she does and t T i*c*??? L says, i-ei s sum wiui uic ouu l Spangled Banner" issue. This r one's hard to defend. The issue is r one of freedom: in this case, her c freedom not to have the national anthem played before her concerts, t She has stated that her refusal to J allow it to be played was not in- r tended to be disrespectful, but was f a result of the musical incongruity \ of the song with her concert and \ modern music. i She does not allow any anthems c to be played at her shows, not j even the Irish anthem. The flag- ^ wavers, and Frank Sinatra in parti- < cular, took the move to be anti- ^ American and responded with boy- \ cotts, insults and threats, even { threats on her life. 1 nrHViA^ f! LJf XllCU v nbia. Be part of it. We are 1 ibers for Rosewood Dr. Iocj nd K.F.C. APPLY NOW! :rformance reviews mncement c0mpe1 LI vlliWIivll Dr. ? Sinatra wanted to deliver what le considered a much needed ipanking to a rock'n'roll brat. I nean, God forbid she actually express her opinion, let alone in a lation that prides itself on democratic freedom! Sinead responded vith the widely accepted knowledge of Sinatra's tendency toward /iolence with women. So they jnipe at each other every so often. Then there's the Prince con^oversy. Sinead accused him of threatening her with violence after ihey argued over her cover of his 'Nothing Compares 2 U." While no one can know what really happened, the fact that she has told this story publicly, that Prince has basically refused to comment and that the press has all but buried the story makes me wonder if maybe there isn't some truth to it We also have the Grammy controversy. She boycotted the ceremony and refused to accept an award because they were decided on the commercial success of the music, rather than the artist's talent It's hardly a new charge. And she's not the first to boy:ott. You may remember the boy:ott a few years ago by most off he rappers who were invited, rhey said that it was racially dis:riminatory because the rap awards uptp nr\t chnwn nn tplpvicinn Now, despite the fact that one of he biggest reasons Sinead has for >oycotting was the fact that comnercialism supports racism in the nusic industry, everybody jumps >n her. And the controversy will coninue, especially if people read the darch 7 issue of Rolling Stone. Silead talks about the albums she lates and will no doubt offend a vide range of people with her >icks (M.C. Hammer, Vanilla Ice, Vhitney Houston and AC/DC). To end the lecture, take it easy m Sinead. Whatever you think of ler, she has the legal right to say vhat she wants. And, there is ;ome truth in what she says. She's i courageous human with endurince and will make mistakes, and ;he has feelings. Grant her that at east liring experienced ition. Be part of a HTIVE SALARY Ipp I