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SITE OF THE DAY lwwwf,bookw6b. cwis.uci | . edu: 804 2 / AdamsHoia?. Take a look at Osborne f Relish late* SOUND A DVICE MARCIJS AMAKER Staff Writer EARLY RECORDINGS Joan Osborne Perhaps the most intriguing aspect of the 1995 year in music was the multi-platinum success of Joan Osborne's Relish. An album rich with eclecticism, Relish was everything popular music dainta to be. Lost in the attention surrounding that album's biggest hit, "One Of Us," was the fact Osborne was already an established artist. Prior to Relish, she released two albums, Soul Show (1991) and Blue Million Miles (a 1993 EP), on her own labeL The demand for these two unavailable records led her to release Early Recordings, which compiles some of the best songs from her pre"One Of Us" days. Osborne's rags-to-riches story owes a lot to the New York club scene. She was a regular at the same clubs which featured then unknown acts like Blues Traveler and the Popular 4pun SOUND ADVICE DAVID BISHOP Staff Writer Violent World Variout Artists Many people's familiarity with the legendary punk band the Misfits extends only to recognition of their mascot, a cloaked skeleton representing 1930s serial hero the Crimson Ghost. So, to clarify: the Misfits are one of punk's most enduringly popular bands whose work spans from the new wave-ish demo Static Age (available only in 1995's Misfits boxed set) to the anthem-laden classic Walk Among Us to the band's final album, the thrashy Earth AD. Each album has inspired countless bands. But, like the Dead Kennedys, are defined by Jello Biafra's unique voice. No band can truly sound like the Misfits without intentionally copying the vocals of their distinctive lead singer, Qlenn Danzig (though this hasn't stoped the Misfits from reforming without Danzig). Which is why Misfits fans? my^ included?approach a tribute to the Misfits with trepidation. No one is interested in carbon copy caver versions, yet anything straying Rnv A Wl For Your Si Cost:$3.bt On Sale and Feb. 7,10, < Office or CalK' n 1. i . ETC. C Mush 1 what's exciting a ans should d offering Spin Doctors. Soul Show was recorded entirely live at Delta 88, one ot the infamous clubs m New York's underground music scene. Most of the songs on Early Recordings come from these live shows, which gives us an intimate and revealing look at Joan Osborne before she became a star. The fact the majority of the songs are presented live lets us hear Osborne the way she was meant to be heard, without the perfection of a studio. On stage, Osborne has no boundaries. "Wild World" is almost unbearable because of that fact, but "Dreamin' About The Day" and "Fingerprints" are Osborne at her best. Songs like "Flyaway," "Match Bum Twice" and "4 Camels" show her Motown-meets-Joplin vocals which would later evolve into "Right Hand Man" and "Dracula Moon" from Relish. A soul singer at heart, Osborne is right at home with a cover of Dusty Springfield's classic "Son of a Preacher Man." k' bands sland too far from the original is heresy. I was especially nervous when I read the lineup of bands, which includes some of the worst that today's scene has produced: The annoyingly generic Pennywise, the pretentiously artsy Tanner, the heavy metal band , . . A TRIBUTE TOT in disguise Snapcase and the dogma-spewing Krishna core band admit that some QjKLvKflu tracks were better than I thought they 1^^*" "W would be. Deadguy has to be making many of the more hardcore fans happy with their ultra-evil rendition of "Horror Business" (inspired, as are many Misfits songs, by a horror movie; in this case, Psycho). Farside doesnt stray too far from the original ' version of "Return of the Fly," but their exaggeration of the song's lounge quality makes it one of the comp's most original and memorable irJa f?7-8188 to place l | ^ ' Sponsored by the I )I\ FRIDAY Take A Look At Eh W7T1 til : For r nd not so exciting University Terrace apartments st Ished moving ont Saturday. The best tracks on Early Recordings come from the songs that were originally on the Blue Million Miles EP. In these songs, we can hear the progression she was making as an artist en route to Relish. The somber "His Eyes Are a Blue Million Miles" and "What You Gonna Do" are precursors to songs like "Lumina" and "Ladder." Naturally, hearing an artist's musical past can sometimes be an ler memory of tracks. Still, the negatives far outweigh the positives. On "Last Caress," NOFX repeatedly go into their brand of pseudo-ska which I swear they invented just to annoy me. Shades Apart drain all the life out of "20 I Eyes," and Prong HE MISFITS ' ' . dare to make 1 "London Dungeon g % into a quasiindustrial song of Goldfinger and Earth Crisis, the twin anti-Christs of punk rock. Goldfinger, the ShaNa-Na of punk, make "Ghoul's Night Out" so squeaky clean that I can hear it rolling off Kennedy's tongue right now. But if 1 could personally kill any band on this compilation, it would be Earth Crisis, who cover "Earth A.D.". How clever! EARTH Crisis covering EARTH AD! These jocks ^^Rne Bag Russell House ice Education 5 orders. lesidence Hall Association ;ctronic Dance Music On WUSC fheM about recent mm <y*^M| SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK ands empty after residents finunpleasant experience, and some of the material on Early Recordings proves Osborne has improved dramatically as a singer and songwriter. Even though Early Recordings contains some solid songs, it's likely only an Osborne- enthusiast will find this album enjoyable. Still, Joan Osborne's future is as promising as most Early Recordings is an interesting look into her past. the Misfits in disguise are today's leading "straight edge" band, meaning they don't drink, smoke, have sex, or do any of the things that fill the average frat boy's life. My theory on why they're straight edge is that they couldnt get into a fraternity, so they needed some other excuse to beat up punks. Yeb, Earth Crisis is renowned in the punk scene for their tendency to punch smokers and drinkers?but only if they've got enough of their mends around to back them up. Hmmm, another similarity to frats? Anyway, before I earn myself a beat down from a bunch of guys in Big Johnson tshirts, let me just mention that Earth Crisis turns in a track that can best be described as Tantera if none of the guys could play solos". The most disturbing thing about this compilation is that Glenn Danzig himself endorsed it. Maybe that shouldn't come as a surprise, with' the music he's made in the last few years, I can't help but feel a little disillusioned. At least there hasn't been a Clash tribute with No Doubt covering "Drug Stabbing Time." At least not yet. .R Uhl T Well, not Join t Just come to one Tuesday Wednesd Thursda !*: M . asses ric releases in d{ Suede's 'C brings them b; SOUND ADVICE MATT CHEVERTON Staff Writer COMING UP Suede This is the third album from the London band Suede, but their first since the departure of their much lauded guitarist and songwriter Bemhard Butler. Around the time of their critically acclaimed debut album, Suede was being hailed as the next big thing by the music press, but, unfortunately for them, they went out on tour here with the Cranberries opening for them. They suffered the ignominy of crowds turning up simply to see the openers and leaving Suede to play to empty venues. While the Cranberries have gone on to sell millions of albums around the world since, Suede by contrast has struggled to live up to the considerable hype that surrounded them at the time of their inception. However, after a self imposed two year exile from the music scene, during which time they have recruited a talented new guitarist and keyboardist, they have confounded the skeptics and come up with an album of rare quality. Although lacking the musical intricacy of their previous albums, this is nevertheless a great guitar pop album containing ten songs, all of which seem like potential singles. Songwriting is now shared between singer Brett Anderson, who writes all of the lyrics on the album as well as the music on two of the tracks, and the two new band i_ _ ?_l ni .1. . .1 /\ i memoers, guitarist rncnara uaites and keyboardist Neil Codling. The usual Suede influences are apparent on this latest album, namely Bowie, T-Rex and The Clash, but, importantly, Suede manages to stamp their own distinct style on everything that they do. This is due in no small part to the powerful and emotive vocals of Anderson, who, in the words of that much overused cliche, is definitely one of those singers whom you either love or you hate. Anderson has an amazing vocal range which is most evident on songs like "Saturday Night" and "Picnic By The Motorway," which illustrate he is a singer in the true sense of the word and not, as is often the case in modern bands, a m ww m mm m RYOUTS, really, but It's cloi he USC Academic ) of our practices t fs, 5:00 Russell H ays, 5:00 Russell ys, 5:00 Russell Y Night" even achieves the seemingly impossible by stealing from Eric Clapton's "Wonderful Tonight" and still managing to sound cooL Okay, so maybe its a bit over the top, but Suede has the panache to just about pull it off. Suede's problem in terms of achieving any level of commercial success here is perhaps they sound just too distinctly English for a music public seemingly obsessed with U.S. alternative rock. So although they seem destined to achieve little more than a small underground following, give them a listen and you may be pleasantly surprised. mw IN! 3e enough. : Team. it the times below. ouse 302 House 205 louse 34o a Bat if I coald personally kill any band on this compilation, it would be Earth Crisis. David Bishop staff writer on Violent World It fferent genres. oming Up' ack up to par guitarist who has the misconception he can disguise his inadequacies by simply adopting a kind of postCobain anguished scream. (Refer to any of the so called modem rock stations for numerous examples). Anderson is also a very intriguing lyricist with his perceptive insights into modem life and society, with the focus as usual on drugs, relationships and alienation. Importantly he avoids falling into the tran of either moralizincr or wallowing in self pity, and his lyrics, although meaningful, still manage to contain a certain amount of dry humor. It certainly takes something to come up with the lines; "Cracked up, stacked up, 22, psycho for sex and glue, lost it to Bostik, yeah. Shaved heads, rave heads on the pill, got too much time to kill, get into bands and gangs." ("Beautiful Ones") The above track is also memorable for its simple yet unforgettable opening guitar riff and is one of the strongest songs on the album. It was the second single released from the album in England after album opener "Trash," a similarly upbeat glam rocker and another of the standout tracks. Elsewhere on the album there are a mixture of out and out rock numbers and delicate piano based ballads. My personal favorite track is the Anderson composition, "By The Sea," the first minute of which featuring just piano and Anderson's vocals, before being augmented by guitars, and is surely enough to make the heart of even the most ardent alt-rock fan melt. The closing track "Saturday