The gamecock. (Columbia, S.C.) 1908-2006, January 28, 2005, Page 6, Image 6
Vtovie Releases I
'■.“Alone in the Dark”
“Hide and Seek”
CD REVIEW
iFranco produces mellow gold
(NUCKLE DOWN"
Nl DIFRANCO
★★★★ out of ☆☆☆☆☆
y JENNIFER FREEMAN
IE MIX EDITOR
Ani DiFranco’s music can be lookec
as an autobiography of sorts, as chi;
:tremelv prolific musician has rcieasec
least one album a year since 1990
er earlier albums were full of tht
notions filling a 19-year-old woman’
:e, and she became known for hei
minist “folk-punk” style. As her lift
id career has evolved, so has hei
msic, reflecting a woman’s search tc
avigate love, live up to her family anc
ve life on her own.
“Knuckle Down” signifies a firsi
>r Ani — she invitee
erformer/songwriter Joe Henry tc
o-produce the record. This mighi
ot seem like it, but for a musiciar
rhose last album (“Educated Guess”;
ras produced by her singing
verything, playing all tht
instruments, recording the tracks at
home and engineering the disc,
bringing someone else into the
creative process is a very big deal.
Luckily Henry, who has nine albums
to his name, collaborates with Ani
perfectly, crafting 12 songs that
inspire deep emotions. Used to
producing her albums by herself, Ani
said Henry “played the role of catalyst
as much as anything for this project.”
Ani still maintains her tried and true
companions — her guitar and her
voice. Both equally distinctive, any Ani
fan will find comfort in the familiarity
of her guitar-picking style and sweetly
raspy voice. However, after the solo
work of “Educated Guess,” Ani revisits
her earlier sound of having a band back
her up. She brings in a string bass, a
piano, percussion, violin, glockenspiel,
electric guitar, melodica and whistling.
Having won a Grammy in 2003 for
Best Recording Package for her
“Evolve” album, the packaging of
“Knuckle Down” is just as creative. A
tri-fold case, the inside contains a
picture of Ani’s forearm and palm. Flip
it over, and the back of the case has the
top of her hand with the track listing
doodled on her hand. The plastic
slipcover echoes the hand motif with
more doodles tracing the outline of the
hand. AnPs fans are familiar with the
beauty of her poetry, which is
contained in a small pullout booklet of
the CD’s lyrics and artwork.
For fans of Ani’s more political
songs, “Paradigm” is the most overdy
political song on the album, but it
doesn’t reach the fervor she usually
attains. It delves more into her family
and how she came to have her political
beliefs.
“Studying Stones” is probably the
prettiest song on the album, with violin
backing Ani’s lyrics.
As usual, “Knuckle Down” is chock
full of songs that anyone who has been
through a breakup can listen to over
and over again and think that Ani must
be inside their head.
“Sunday Morning” reminisces about
those lazy mornings spent laying in bed
and the other little things you miss
most after a relationship ends.
“Sunday morning/sheets still
warm/kitties swarming/around our
feet/life comes easy ... I’ve done with
your ghosts/still it’s Sunday morning/I
miss you the most.”
The spoken-word piece
“Parameters” deals with subject matter
every female will understand — coming
home to find a stranger in her home.
Ani’s storytelling abilities rival any
author’s.
For long-time Ani fans, this album
expands on her familiar subjects and
musical style. Fpr those unfamiliar with
this folk singer’s music, her newest
album might be a good starter. It isn’t
as overtly political as some of her earlier
albums. For those who think of Ani as
an angry-feminist man-hater, this
mellow, touching album will prove
those notions wrong. She has matured
over the years, and she imparts the
lessons she has learned in her music.
Comments on this story? E-mail
gamecockfeatures@gwm.sc. edu
" . i
MOVIE REVIEW
Clint Eastwood, as an aging boxing coach, and Hilary Swank, as a female boxer training under
Eastwood, star in “Million Dollar Baby,” which earned nominations for seven Academy Awards.
Eastwood’s ‘Baby’ worth a million
“Million Dollar Baby”
★★★★ but of ☆☆☆☆☆
By TODD GREEN
THE GAMECOCK
Clint Eastwood’s “Million Dollar
Baby" is the best boxing movie since
“Raging Bull."
“Baby” is not really a boxing movie,
but tells a story of human spirit
through three characters whose lives
involve and have been shaped by
boxing.
“Million Dollar Baby” stars
Eastwood, Hilary Swank and
Morgan Freeman. Eastwood’s
character, Frankie Dunn, is an aging
boxing trainer that runs a small Los
Angeles gym. Freeman plays Scrap
■ Iron, Frankie’s best friend and a
former-boxer-turned-janitor-in
residence at the gym. Swank’s
character, Maggie Fitzgerald, is a 32
year-old waitress from a
dysfunctional Missouri family.
Maggie shows up begging Frankie
to train her. Maggie believes she can
make it as a fighter, and it might be her
only chance at achieving any
semblance of a happy life. Frankie
immediately refuses — he doesn’t train
girls.
Maggie is not the type of person to
give up very easily. She joins the gym
and begins to tirelessly work out every
day in hopes that Ftankie might notice
her determination and agree to train
her. Scrap-Iron begins to like Maggie.
He tries to convince Frankie to take
Maggie in and teach her. Frankie
reluctantly agrees.
If you were a fan of “The
Shawshank Redemption,” you will
probably also like “Baby.” The story is
told through Freeman’s eyes, similar to
the way his character ‘Red’ told the
story in “Redemption.”
The movie’s real power comes when
Frankie trains Maggie. In Maggie, we
see a woman who comes from nothing,
but she has such a passionate spirit and
such an indomitable attitude that you
cannot help but absolutely fall in love
with her character. She is the ultimate
underdog triumph story. The fight
scenes make you want to stand up and
cheer for her.
As Frankie teaches Maggie how to
be a champion, it becomes clear that he
is in just as much need of help as
Maggie. Frankie’s troubles come from
his past, from regret. The relationship
between student and pupil becomes
circular. Watching Maggie perform is a
healing process in and of itself for
Frankie.
While boxing is a primary part of
the first three-quarters of the movie,
the plot takes a surprising turn at its
conclusion. The movie stays with you.
It is on your mind long after you have
left the theater
The performances are spectacular.
The best acting is when characters can
express a wide range of feelings and
emotions with a single, simple
expression on their faces.
Eastwood and Swank do this time
and again, with their dialogue simple,
yet meaningful, at the same time. It is
truly a work of an — one of the best
films in recent years.
Comments on this story? E-mail
ga7necockfeatures@g1vm.sc. edu
Beyonce clothing line
to land in stores this fall
By SAMANTHA CRITCHELL
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
NEW YORK — Beyonce is planning
a new release — her own fashion
collection. The Destiny’s Child singer
has signed a licensing agreement with
the Tarrant Apparel Group to produce a
line of apparel for young women. She
named the House of Dereon collection
after her grandmother Agnes Dereon,
who worked as a seamstress.
The first fashions will be in stores
this fall, and the look will be “a mix of
vintage things with contemporary
things. It’ll be fur with denim, classic
with street,” Beyonce said.
The collection also will include party
dresses, sweaters and even some tailored
jackets.
“I have pretty broad taste. I’ve been
all over the world — thank God I’ve
had the chance to do that,” the 23-year
old told The Associated Press on
Wednesday.
Beyonce will design the line with
her mother, Tina Knowles, who along
with her daughter formed
Beyond Productions, a joint
venture with Kids
Headquarters. They’ll work
with co-creative director
Heather Thomson
Schindler.
“I think my mother and I
both have a good idea of what
people who are fashionable
like,” the singer said. “I love
clothes from my
grandmothers generation,
my mother’s generation and
contemporary stuff.”
Beyonce is already wearing
some of the samples. She
spoke to the AP by phone
during a fitting for the dress
she’ll wear in the upcoming
“Cater to You” video.
“It’s a takeoff of sparkle....
It’s son of Supremes-era,” she
said.
Tina Knowles, the stylist
for Destiny’s Child, said the
mother-daughter design team
THE ASSOCIATED PRESS
Beyonce Knowles will design the new
clothing line with her mother, Tina.
broadens the audience for the clothing
line.
“It'll have a young feel but be
practical, too,” she said. Knowles also
noted that some of the design and
sewing techniques that her mother
taught her, including smocking and
hand-beading, are trendy again.
Cory Silverstein, Beyond
Production’s executive vice president,
said House of Dereon outerwear
should be available by the holiday
season.
“And we’re two more heartbeats
away for shoes and handbags,” he said,
while lingerie, eyewear, jewelry, a
fragrance and home products are on the
timeline for the next three years.
*
f-1
"The prestige of an honor society,
responsibility of a service organization,
and the fellowship of a social fraternity."
Phi Sigma Pi
National Coeducational
Honor Fraternity
Informationals
When: Feb. 2 and 3
Time: 7:30 pm
Where: RHUU 304
Must have 3.0 GPA to join
ozn use
i'fiuionai mUiIvI j icttti i tin*
E-mail phisigmapiau@yahoo.com or go to
web.sa.sc.edu / phisigmapi / AlphaUpsilonHome.htm
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