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This Week in USC History Feb. 9, 1972 - Three Gamecock staff members received subpeonas after publishing an article about drug problems at USC. ---- Page 5 ‘Jam-man’ comes to town Guitarist Keller Williams making waves with new sounds' by Rob Seal The Gamecock Keller Williams might be considered the best-kept secret in modem mu sic. The only way to describe his 10-string guitar style is to say it’s downright nasty. Continually on tour, Williams rolls into Columbia tonight to play at Elbow Room. He is traveling in support of his newest album, v^oop, which showcases • his current musical infatuation, the “jam-man.” This instrument allows Williams not only to play the guitar and sing, but also to be his own supporting band. He simply pushes a pedal with his foot, plays a riff on his guitar, presses the same button again, and the “jam-man” will play the riff over and over. This allows Williams to casually stroll over to his free-standing bass guitar and play a bass line on top of the guitar riff. Instrument by instrument, he builds a song all by himself. These performances are usually done barefoot, Williams says, because it feels more comfortable. When .asked how he first began experiment ing with the loop machine, Williams said, “In 1998, I opened up for Victor Wxrton, and he was using the sampler. I pretty much searched for the same unit that he had. I guess it wasn’t until 1999 that I got the correct unit.” Williams has played with many artists such as 'he String Cheese Incident (who were the backing band for his 1999 release, Breathe), Phil Lesh, David Grisman, Victor Wooton and Ani DiFranco. With the aid of his loop machine, Williams has been dazzling audiences in smoky bars and amphitheaters across the country. He recently returned from the West, where he recorded Loop, a collection of live tracks from shows played around the Pacific-North west. The new album features plenty of Williams 10-string “cowboy pickin’’ guitar style as well as his latest improvisations with the loop machine. Every instru ment on the album is played by Williams, whether it’s the guitar, bass, djembe, mouth percussion or the mouth flugel. The mouth flugel is a vocal technique Williams has developed that allows him to replicate the sound of homed instruments out of the side ol his mouth. The result is a tone almost iden tical to that of a trumpet or trombone. Reflecting on the loop machine, Williams said, “It opens up the possibilities of im provisation. It really makes life more interesting to me to go off on a whim on any kind of song. I can just hit a but ton and lay down a riff, a solo. The most important thing in my shows is to keep myself happy, and^^j I that’ll reflect in the m'usic and keep everybody happy.” Williams definite ly achieves an electric live performance that has never failed to satisfy his audience. In ad dition to his musical ability, he delivers a sort of acoustic funk-folk that accom panies his clever and often humorous lyrics. Williams shared his thoughts on how electronic music is affecting record sales, say ing, “I’m pretty pro-Internet right now. I consider making records to be a lot like paint ing. It’s kind of a moment in time in my career. This record is what this particular time presents. On the other hand, my life is really about live >erformance, and CDs and records kind of act as a promotional tool to get people out to the live show. I think the Internet is really cool because it gets the music out worldwide. The Internet isn’t good for artists that don’t tour. But touring is such a big part of my life that it allows me to reach more ears that I otherwise would.” If you’re a music lover, Elbow Room is where you want to be tonight. In addition to being down right amazing! Williams lays down a funky blend of acoustic grooves that are almost guaranteed to get you moving. The spotlight desk can be reached at gamecockspotiight@hotmail.com Special to The Gamecock One-man band Keller Williams comes to Elbow Room tonight to perform his unique music. Jerilee Bennett/College Press Exchange New residence halls, constructed at the University of Utah in Salt Lake City, will be used as the Winter Olympic Village to house nearly 3,000 athletes. After the 2002 Olympics, they will go back to being used as student dorms. Salt Lake City preparing | for long-awaited Olympics by Lynn Zinser College Press Exchange SALT LAKE CITY - With a year to go until the start of the Winter Olympics it’s been chasing since 1966, Salt Lake City is ready to breathe a collective sigh of relief. With nearly all the sporting venues completed, with all the plans in place, the money largely raised, the ^ cataclysmic 2-year-old bribery scandal all but bulldozed from the headlines, an actual Olympics is poised to take over this city Feb. 8,2002. That’s when the Opening Ceremony will kick off 17 days of skiing, skating and sliding, when 2,400 athletes competing in seven sports, 1,000 coaches and officials, 9,000 members of the media and 2 million spectators will turn this normally quiet city on the Uhsatch Front into the center of the world. Considering the scandal that threw all of that into so much doubt, just getting to this point is a victory. “It sure feels a lot better than when I came here two years ago, and even than a year ago,” said Mitt Romney, g president of the Salt Lake Organizing Committee (SLOC), the man who stepped into the Olympics at their lowest and directed them back toward health. “I lost a lot of sleep wondering if we’d even have games.” Now, the focus is different. The Games will happen. The scandal — in which former oiganizers Tom Welch and Dave Johnson are accused of paying more than $1 million in bribes to International Committee members to win the Games — mushroomed into a full-scale Crisis in early 1999. With sponsorship money trickling to a halt, SLOC’s new leadership trimmed the budget to $1.31 billion. Fund-raising eventually resumed, and now Romney said he is confident of breaking even and not leaving Utah taxpayers with any debt. SLOC will be spending the next year trying to upgrade the Games, putting back some of the frills sliced out of the budget when the scandal hit. Oiganizers want to find funds to decorate the city, throw free concerts, fancy up the Opening and Closing ceremonies. After all, the reason Salt Lake boosters started chasing the Games 35 years ago and resorted to the now-infamous bribery was to put this place on the world map. This is Salt Lake’s international tourism commercial. TV will beam its profile to 3 billion viewers around the world, showing off a modern Western city ringed on three sides by stately, snow-covered mountains. Salt Lake wants to boost its reputation as a ski destination to rival Colorado, to crack its image as a Mormon-dominated cow town. “It is very much our objective to have great Games,” Romney said. “We’ve been trying to lower expectations, talking about how tough it’s been in Salt Lake. But we do expect we will surprise people by putting on Games that make people stand back and say, ‘Wow.’” There’s still a year’s worth of possible pitfalls between here and “wow.” It’s a year that will probably see the trial of Welch and Johnson, putting that ugliness back up for re view. If the case isn’t settled or delayed, the trial will be in June. In a twisted bit of timing, a hearing on the case’s dis missal is scheduled for this Thursday during Salt Lake’s party to celebrate Making the perfect compilation tape Folks, you’re reading the words of a man who takes the mixed-tape business seri ously. Maybe I’m a dork, but I know I’m not — - alone. If any thing, there are many wonderful dorks like me who will agree that making a mixed tape is a serious process. Sure, you can half-ass it every now and then or throw something together on a whim, but the ones you map out can be a thing of beauty. Spontaneity is worth a lot, but not in this business. 5o how do we go about making a mixed tape? Let’s look at this as an opportunity to make the album we’ve always wanted and deserved.' We have complete freedom, but there are unwritten rules. This is the only novelty left for cassettes. So let’s not foul it up, OK? The opener is crucial. It needs to set the pace of the entire tape, and it’s our responsibility to nurture that momentum throughout the selection and recording process. If we choose a rock anthem-esque opener, we can’t drop the intensity level right away. We have to slowly taper off. Think of segues. Don’t jump from sound to sound unless that’s the theme we’re going for. Keep an ear out for flow. If we can have consistency for a full tape, we’re well on our way. Another fancy notion about the mixed-tape business is we can take a trip to the days when albums had two sides (sometimes as many as four). In the vinyl years, artists didn’t have just one beginning and ending to think about. They had to be concerned with ending side one and beginning side two. We get that unique opportuni ty. So if we’re in search for a change of pace, the solution could only be minutes away. It’s ideal to have each side stand alone in flow and composition (i.e. good beginning, middle and end), but this can be as much as a safety net as it is an added bonus. So, do we mix genres and musi cal theme? Sure, why the hell not? Go from Uncle Tupelo to the Pixies. It’s all fair game. This is our tape, sonny Jim. While this isn’t something to be tak en lightly, it should be fun. I like a strong opener that can carry the momentum for three songs. By then, the tape has changed its pace and atmosphere. I might open with Built to Spill and be on Uncle in less than 15 minutes. The challenge and fun of it is try ing to make it work. It’s like “Six Degrees of Kevin Bacon,” but with music. Once you think you’ve got a feel for the process, you can toy with themed tapes or even concept mix es. Try nothing but songs about the road. How about one that has a pi ano in every song? I am working on one right now that I think everyone should try. Gather a list of about twenty friends (depending on tape length), and compile the songs that remind you of that person. Every time I hear “Two-Headed Boy” by Neutral Milk Hotel, I think of a close friend of mine. It was playing in the car when we drove him to his residence hall after he cashed out at a party. I’ll never forget that night, and I’ll forever associate that song with him and that moment. Music has that power. It can be more than a device to drown out the quiet monotony of our daily lives. Music can conjure up memories and emotions. It can inspire. Hell, I think one of the greatest things about music is realizing that a person whom you’ve never met can relate to you through their words and music. You connect with that song and that songwriter, though you’re com plete strangers. That is the power and beauty of music. This is why we can’t abuse it with petty mixed tapes. OK, we can, but it’s just a damn travesty when we do. The spotlight desk cun be reached at gamecockspotlight@hotmail.com What’s Happening FRIDAY, FEB. 9: ALLEY CAFE, New Legacy Duo BIL1Y G’S, Soul Mites DELANEY’S, Tim White : ELBOW ROOM, Keller Williams, Josh Robers, Ryan Monroe HEMINGWAY’S, Break The Silence HUNTER-GATHERER, Skillit! JAMMIN’ JAVA, Miranda Stone, Brooke Campbell MAC’S ON MAIN, Fatback & The'Groove Band MONTERREY JACK’S, Frank Smoak & The Amazing Buddy Ray NEW BROOKLAND, Black Acid Disco, Cartoon Violence SUNDANCE, Rev-7, 210 Deluxe TOWNSHIP, Aaron Tlppin, Clay Davidson. SATURDAY, FEB. 10: BIL1Y G’S Dezeray’s Hammer DELANEY’S Tim White ELBOW ROOM Sick Speed, Gargantua Soul HEMINGWAY’S whatever... the band ICY’S Two Pennies JAMMIN’ JAVA Wilshire MAC’S ON MAIN Fred Wesley & The All-Stars MONTERREY JACK’S Frank Smoak & The Amazing Buddy Ray NEW BROOKLAND The Impossibles, River City High, Blueline Medic ROADRUNNERS Brandon Mann & Brainstorm SKYLINE Legend SUNDANCE Kevin Kinney, Angie Aparo, 210 Deluxe (all acoustic show) SUNDAY, FEB. 11: C0TT1NGHAM THEATRE Columbia College Clinic Band Concert DECISIONS Blues Jam w/ Brainstorm RAFTERS Open jam w/Rick Stevens PUBUCK HOUSE Traditional Irish Session In The News Hollywood to make ‘Exorcist’ prequel LOS ANGELES (AP) — The devil is planning a comeback in Hollywood. Filmmakers began casting Wednesday for a prequel to the Academy Award-winning 1973 horror film The Exorcist, which chronicled an aging priest’s fight to save a possessed girl. In the original film, Max Von Sydow played Father Merrin, who reveals that he encountered the same demon during his time as a missionary in Africa The prequel, tentatively titled The Exorcist: Dominion, will follow this early battle between the young missionary and the evil spirit, according to Morgan Creek Productions. It’s unknown whether the 71-year-old Von Sydow will have a role in the new movie. \fthmer Bros., which rereleased The Exorcist last year with never-before-seen footage, plans to distribute Dominion. This would be the fourth movie in The Exorcist series. The original was followed by Exorcist 11: The Heretic in 1977 and The Exorcist Ill 'm 1990.