The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, September 05, 2003, Page 5, Image 5
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^ THE GAMECOCK ♦ Friday, September 5, 2003 5
CONTACT US THEY SAID IT
Story ideas? Questions? Comments? MADI, „T, „ . __
F-maii us atgamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com schooling mterfere with my
shouldering
the burden
Heavy backs have
students looking for
alternative packs
BY TRINA RAHMAN
THE (iAMECUCK
Campus life can be a heavy burden to car
ry. With textbooks and other class essentials
constantly in tow, most students shoulder a
lot of weight on their way to class each day.
The back-to-school season always brings
an influx of new and improved book bag
| styles to area stores. Students must consider
I— but no longer have to choose between —
form and function when searching for that
ideal carry-all pack.
An assortment of variations on the tradi
tional backpack are now available to the bag
toting student — the messenger bag, the sin
gle-strap backpack, the shoulder tote, the mo
bile backpack on wheels. Most students want a
bag that is big enough to hold what they need
for the day’s classes, freeing them from sub
sequent trips back to the dorm.
Jerome Green, a third-year hospitality and
retail management student, walks from the
business administration building to the coli
seum for class two days a week. He wanted a
tough, dependable backpack that also had a
place for his CDs. He eventually decided on
carrying a traditional-style pack.
“I used to carry a backpack on wheels, but it
would catch in the cracks of the sidewalk, and
it didn’t have pockets,” he said.
No matter what style one chooses, a back
pack is not cheap. At the Russell House book
store, a classic Jansport featuring three zip
pered compartments and a water bottle pock
et sells for $49.98.
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made by Dickies. The company describes the
bags as “extremely durable,” made of “600 de
nier polyester with fused PVC rubberized wa
ter backing.” Those who have owned a pair
of pants by Dickies can attest to the durability
of the materials used.
Dickies also makes a messenger bag that is
available in two sizes, the smaller of which
seems less roomy than the average-sized mes
senger. Both sizes cost $29.98.
Levis’ has also started making bags — a cor
duroy messenger is available for $24.98 in a
variety of colors. The company’s denim mes
senger bag sells for $34.98, yet, considering its
small size, it seems better suited for show than
for function.
The South Carolina Bookstore offers a stur
dy Jansport messenger bag for $50; the
brand’s basic messenger style sells for $40.
Other models ip the Jansport line include:
the Darkstar, a heavy-duty pack for $44.99;
the Velocity, a multi-colored bag for $39.99;
and the Urban Transit, a combination shoul
der bag and backpack, for $43.99.
The store also carries the Airpacks line,
which includes a> single-strap bag — a popu
lar style this fall — in both suede ($49.95) and a
“sporty” version ($69.95).
Heather Martin, a first-year history student,
prefers to carry a tote bag, which seems to be a
popular style around campus these days. Her
bag is made by Vera Bradley.
“I hate it when (a) book bag’s strap hits the
back of my legs and doesn’t allow the back to
breathe,” she says.
Her friend Michelle Quigly, a first-year
nursing student, carries an L.L. Bean book bag
on most days but switches to a messenger bag
when she only has one class.
She said she didn’t want to carry ^tradi
tional book bag “unless I have to.”
“The average weight a student should carry
on their backs is between 10 to 15 pounds, but a
college student will add 15 to 20 pounds,” said
Michael Flemming, a buyer for The
Backpacker store downtown. Many students
buy bags from this store for use at school.
“I think the messenger bag is more popu
lar out West, while book bags are more pop
ular in the South,” he said.
The Backpacker carries several lines
including the less-expensive but
durable brand Kelty and the popular
The North Face. North Face bags
range in price from $40 to $90, and
sell out quickly, according to
Flemming. The North
Face’s line includes 25
styles in all; eight of those
have proved to be top sell
ers at The Backpacker.
Eddie Bauer, which
has stores at both _
Columbiana Centre, Jg
also makes book j0l
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and cell phone, and fl
a CD portal. They are con- B
structed with both 840 and
1,680 denier nylon.
The higher the nylon '
count, the higher the quality of the material;
furthermore, the addition of polyester is what
makes bags waterproof. The bags at Eddie
Bauer are in fact made with Teflon — a
durable coating used in the manufacture of
cooking pans — which causes water to bead
up and roll off the bag.
In the end, a book bag can meet a student’s
needs in both formand function. A backpack
serves not only to carry essentials but to re
flect one’s personal style. Finding that ideal,
bag may take some shopping around, but it
will ultimately prove to be a weight off the
book-lugging student’s shoulders.
Comments on this story?E-mail
gamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com
First-year
music student
Katie Thigpen
has a new
book bag for
the year.
PHOTO BY TRISHA
SHADWELL/THE
GAMECOCK
Local bands supply city with diverse sampling of musical styles
BY MEGAN TREACY
THE GAMECOCK
Considering its relatively small
size, the Capitol City has a grow
ing community of talented musi
cians. Although only a sampling
ri the local music buffet, the fol
ing three artists are currently
whetting the appetites of area mu
sic fans and satisfying listeners
both on campus and beyond.
Guitar Show
MEMBERS: Daniel Machado,
vocals and guitar; Sierra
Machado, bass and vocals; and
guest musicians
GENRE: Pop rock
ALBUMS: “Guitar Show Live”
(2002), “Once Around the Sun”
(2003), “The Beast” EP (Summer
2003)
SHOW DATES: Sept. 20 — Fuze
2003 festival
BIO: Guitar Show was formed in
the summer of2001 and has already
gone through its share of lineup
changes. The band now mainly
consists of brother and sister pan
Daniel and Sierra Machado and a
rotating mix of guest musicians
that fill in at shows.
Guitar Show has three releases
to date, the most recent being the
five-song “The Beast” EP released
this summer—the band’s first stu
dio-quality recording.
Guitar Show has played at a
number of local venues and just re
cently made it to the finals of New
Brookland Tavern’s Battle of the
Bands this summer.
The band is set to play at the up
coming Fuze 2003 festival along
side local bands Tigerhot Hesh,
Cool Hand Luke, Courage Riley
and others.
Dade County Resistance
MEMBERS: Garrett Grashuis,
guitar and vocals; Mark Emerson,
bass; Troy Thames, drums
GENRE: Punk
ALBUMS: “Twelve Step
Program” (three-way split), “The
Long Story Short” (six-song
demo), “Every Last Chance” (full
length, April 2003)
SHOW DATES: Sept. 27 —
Swayze’s in Atlanta; Oct. 4 —
Music Farm in Charleston; Oct. 12
— New Brookland Tavern
BIO: Dade County Resistance
was formed in 2001 when a former
band of Garrett Grashuis and
Mark Emerson became defunct.
They then enlisted Troy Thames
of Guyana Punch Line to be their
drummer and set to work.
In their first year as a band,
they released four songs on a
three-way split with Burns Out
Bright and Last to Know titled
“Twelve Step Program” and the
put out a six-song demo titled “The
Long Story Short.”
Dade County Resistance has
played with notorious punk bands
Stretch Armstrong, Hot Water
Music, Midtown and Dillinger
Four. In April 2003, they released
“Every Last Chance”, their debut
full length, on Illinois’s Trend is
Dead! Records and South Carolina’s
Three Day Hero Records.
Josh Bowers
, i
MEMBERS: Josh Bowers, acous
tic guitar and vocals
GENRE: Acoustic singer-song
writer
ALBUMS: “A Title Similar or in
Reference to.. .or Simply Side A”
SHOW DATES: None at present
BIO: Josh Bowers began play
ing guitar at age 14 and quickly
started writing his own songs out
of frustration when he couldn’t fig
ure out how to play any covers.
Bowers, a fifth-year English stu
dent, transferred from USC
Lancaster last year and has been
bringing his minimalist sound to
Columbia venues on a regular ba
sis since.
He most recently played at
Cockapalooza during Welcome
Week. Bowers has performed solo
for most of his career, but did have
a two-year stint with a band from
1999 to 2001. Even though his first
band didn’t work out, Bowers is
always thinking about putting a
band together to create a sound he
calls “literary rock,” of which he
considers Death Cab for Cutie to
be an example.
Bowers, who reads constantly,
is just as inspired by his favorite
author Douglas Coupland as he is
by his favorite band Saves the
Day. While Bowers admits to ul
timately wanting to sign to a la
bel, his main concern is to keep
writing and continue being
creative.
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CD REVIEW
Neil Young keeps career alive with tales of(Greendale>
<
“GREENDALE”
Neil Young and Crazy Horse
★ ★★OUtof-frA-ftirft
BY CHARLES TOMLINSON
THE (iAMEUOCK
Neil Young hasn’t let up for al
most 40 years. Although he made
. history with Buffalo Springfield
and Crosby, Stills, Nash and
Young, he’s still investing his
heart in his solo career.
“Greendale,” his latest album with
backing band Crazy Horse, un
folds like a 10-song countrified
soap opera.
The naked simplicity of
“Greendale,” set in the fictional
town of the same name, empowers
the album. The songs often serve
as repetitive backdrops for Young
to tell the story, but catchy cho
ruses always emerge from Crazy
Horse’s 10-minute extended im
provisations.
Guitarist Frank “Poncho”
Sampedro is absent, which gives
“Greendale” an even more pared
down sound.
While it’s tempting to call
“Greendale” a concept album, it’s
amazing that it turned out as co
herent as it did.
“When I was writing this, I had
no idea what I was doing, so I was
just as surprised as you are,”
Young writes in the liner notes,
which contain his rambling ex
planations of the songs.
The first three songs introduce
the Green family, including
ornery old Grandpa, hippie child
Sun Green and wayward Cousin
Jed, who in “Leave the Driving”
shoots Officer Carmichael during
a traffic stop.
The characters are new, but
Young has preached about some
of the album’s themes in the
past.
“Change comes slow in the
country,” he sings, echoing the
sentiments of his ’70s hits
“Southern Man” and “Alabama.”
Along with a chorus of female
backup singers, he reminds us
that “we’ve got to save Mother
Earth” on the album’s closer “Be
the Rain.”
Young also tackles the media
on “Grandpa’s Interview.” Early
in the story, Sun Green is at
home working on a report for
school called “How to Use
the Media,” foreshadowing
Grandpa’s death by stroke or
heart attack while defiantly con
fronting reports on his front
porch.
Grandpa says during the open
ing song, “Seems like that guy
singing this song has been doing
it for a long time/ Is there any
thing you know that he ain’t
said?”
As the stream-of-consciousness
inspired “Greendale” flows forth,
it proves that, as an artist. Young
has plenty left to say.
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