University of South Carolina Libraries
THE GAMECOCK ♦ Wednesday, June 9, 2004 7 CONTACT IIS TIT? MTY THEY SAID IT LiUiN lAtii US |—| M VI I A DOUGLAS ADAMS: “You live and learn. E-mail us at gamecockfeatures@gwm.sc.edu -L _L XT JL _LX JL At any rate, you live.” England hasn’t been quite so merry over the past week, what with my internship yet to start and gas prices reaching heights rarely seen. Great Britain has the highest gas prices of any of the European Union countries, due mainly to high taxes. Just re cently, a gallon of gas over here could run you $7.32. That means filling up the tank of my precious Saturn SL1 in Britain would cost me $87.84, and it’s an economy car. Naturally, the high WES WOLFE prices have sent the elec Fourth-year torate into a tizzy. public relations The Labour Party, with student whom I was supposed to be working, was already ex pected to take a beating in the elections. On June 10, voters will be voting on local council members and European parliament members, while those in London have the added re sponsibility of ♦ WOLFE, SEE PAGE 8 Movie. Review ‘Azkaban ’flaunts darker imagery “HARRY POTTER AND THE PRISONER OF AZKABAN” outof***** BY STEVEN VAN HAREN THE GAMECOCK In an early scene of “Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban,” one of Harry’s vile relatives begins a slow rant against the boy wizard’s dead parents. The camera slowly zooms in to his face, and his anger comes through in a tantrum of magic. This is a new, haunted Harry Potter, trying to come to terms with his parents’ deaths and his own place in the world. Third time’s the dark charm for this fantasy series. as nis junior year oegms at Hogwarts, Harry (Daniel Radcliffe with new acting depths) finds himself the target of Sirius Black (Gary Oldman), a greasy serial killer who has es caped the fantasy equivalent of Alcatraz. Dementors, soul-suck ing apparitions very similar to the Ringwraiths from “The Lord of the Rings,” have been track ing Black and stand guard on the perimeter of the school. Too bad everything looks like red meat to them, including unwit ting students. Ron (Rupert Grint) and Hermione (Emma Watson) help Harry siphon information about Black while engaging in a stormy quidditch game, trump ing Malfoy and his posse, and at tending the usual block of bizarre classes, including Hagrid’s auspicious discussion of Buckbeak, a horse-eagle hy brid. “Azkaban” carries the tra dition of believability from the first two movies — the charac ters make the audience believe in magic. Professor Dumbledore (Michael Gambon replacing the wise Richard Harris) once again oversees the faculty, including the enjoyably dreadful Snape ♦ AZKABAN, SEE PAGE 8 PHOTO COURTESY OF KRT CAMPUS Daniel Radcliffe stars as boy wizard Harry Potter. CD. Releases it-rni irrin-nni- irn— mss,,. ^ ^, -,1rtUTl—• ,si,- <. *•- ... ■ .. . ™ BY JORDAN REDMOND THE GAMECOCK SONIC NURSE Sonic Youth Sonic Youth is a band syn onymous with the term “indie rock.” Their influence resonates as much as any other band to come along during Sonic Youth’s lifespan of over twenty years. Well into their third decade of exis tence, the band is as vital as ever, as evidenced by “Sonic Nurse,” their best album since 1992's “Dirty.” Kim Gordon’s songwrit ing is very prominent, penning perhaps the best songs of her ca reer. Then there is the old stand by, Thurston Moore, whose disaf fected delivery exudes a timeless cool. The intricate guitar play, pop melodies and requisite noisy feed back all combine to provide a sense of urgency and one of the year’s best albums thus far. LOUDEN UP NOW !!! !!! is a band all about subversion. Their seem ingly unpronounceable name is perhaps one of the most perplex ing in all of music, not even bar ring consonant-laden Polish folk artists. Commonly known as Chk Chk Chk, this Brooklyn-based band is a crew of revolutionaries intent on liberating you from years of stiff indie rock shows. Influenced by disco, dub, new wave and post-punk, !!! crafts sprawling dance epics that work the hips as well as the mind. Not content to satirize the state of in die music, the group challenges FCC regulations with the album's first single, “Pardon My Freedom,” a seemingly endless string of expletives cooly deliv ered by frontman Nic Offer. According to !!!, the revolution willbedanceable. STONE, STEEL AND BRIGHT LIGHTS Jay Farrar Rock historians would always have you believe that the world is simply divided into two opposing camps of people. It’s either Paul or John, Gene or Ace, the Captain or Tennille. If you ask any plaid clad alt-country afficionado, chances are they will pledge alle giance to either Jeff Tweedy or Jay Farrar, the two main men be hind the legendary Uncle Tupelo. While Jeff has arguably gone cn to more fame with the more ex perimental Wilco, Jay delved fur ther into roots rock with the beloved Son Volt and a satisfying solo career. This live record cov ers Farrar’s previous three solo outings. On display here are the vintage qualities we’ve come to expect: Farrar’s powerful, earthy voice telling tales of heartbreak and hard living with salvation al ways only one more drink away.