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T T | 1 HI /TTTT THEY SAID IT I_I | J ’ \\ /■ I “Every improvement in communication I I B“^ % I I B makes the bore more terrible." Wednesday, February 16,2005 | 1 1 V I | j\ frank moore colby — . - CD REVIEW ‘Noises’ churns out Texas pop harmonies “ROOM NOISES’’ Eisley ★★★ out of ☆☆☆☆☆ By PATRICK A. AUGUSTINE THE GAMECOCK Some artists devote their entire lives to art despite a lack of critical or commercial success. Vincent Van Gogh died having only sold one painting, and it was only after his death that his innovative style was appreciated. This is not the case with Eisley, the Texan pop group formed by the family DuPree in 1997. Comprised of sisters Chauntelle (guitars), Sherri (vocals/guitars), Stacy (vocals/keys), brother Weston on drums and bassist Jon Wilson, the group garnered critical acclaim from the Dallas Observer following 2003’s EP release, “Laughing City.” A critical mass of good reviews led to an opening spot on the American stretch of Coldplay’s 2003 world tour. After a second release the same year, Eisley took 2004 off to record its first full length “Room Noises,” released Feb. 8 on Warner subsidiary Reprise Rprnrfl? While Eisley’s lineage from 1990s bands like Belly is clear, and a few of the tracks on “Room Noises” are culled from the independently released EP’s, the album as a whole showcases a young band coming more fully into its own sound with more sophisticated writing and arrangements. The band’s sound is driven primarily by the sisters’ harmonizing of introspective lyrics layered over piano chords and chiming rock guitars, the latter of which the band said in a news release it culled from listening to Radiohead. Instead of delving into the overproduction and artistic haze that was the hallmark of their obvious influences, like Sixpence None the Richer, Eisley remains in pop territory while reinventing their unique sound. Working with several producers during the course of the album, and turning the knobs themselves on two tracks, the end result nonetheless maintains continuity amid the opportunity for a piecemeal result. The contrast between songs that appeared on the two EP’s, like the single “Marvelous Things,” along with “Telescope Eyes” and “I Wasn’t Prepared,” is readily apparent because of the inclusion of a more up-tempo, guitar-centric sound, as opposed to the earlier iteration that was more piano-heavy and lilting. “Golly Sandra showcases the band’s Texan roots via a prominent slide guitar line, while Just Like We Do” belies Eisley’s versatility with a stripped down acoustic guitar mplndv and keyboards that complement the sister’s harmonies. Topically, Eisley wanders over terrain that is uncharacteristic of a band full of high-school students — the lead track “Memories evokes love lost after a lifetime together, while the rest of the CD swirls around the usual issues of love and confused relationships. Eisley is at their strongest on the naked Just Like We Do,” when they declare “Dear did you know that people love each other/just like we do/just like they do/Dear did you know you re all 1 ask for so hold on to me.” With the backing of a major label, Eisley can certainly expect big promotion, and in return it is certain that Warner expects big things from the young group. Eisley is certain to hold up its end of the bargain for fans of sensitive pop harmonics, and since the oldest member is 22, they have many years of creative energy ahead of them. Though few people can imagine living on the road 24/7 with their family, it means there’s little fear of Eisley breaking up over artistic differences. Cjomments on this story ? E^noil gamtcockfeatures@fru.-m.sc.edu . By JULIA SELLERS THE GAMECOCK TEOTD. If frequent text messaging and Internet chatting is part of your daily routine, the jargon might be simple to decipher. For the technology-challenged, that jumble of letters and symbols means-at the end of the day.” With the growing availability of technology, whether by phone, computer or PDA, the youth generation has been thrown into a new form of communication, the communication of few words ; . A text message is a brief electronic message sent and received via a wireless network and viewed on any number of electronic media, according to www.netlingo.com. Instant messaging is the -I probably send about 10 to 15 text messages a Communication alterations were studied even with the introduction of telephones, Bezuidenhout said. Because there was no face-to-face communication, compensations in voice intonation and gestures were made by people. Now those who engage in online chats have to compensate in the same manner, but on a larger scale. Now even pragmatic things, such as sarcasms, require a tone of voice. Bezuidenhout said one major form of compensation is the emoticons, like :) for a smiley “I probably send about 10 to 15 text messages a day with my girlfriend.” JARED RAPP FOURTH-YEAR CRIMINAL JUSTICE STUDENT face, that are used in place of a type of facial expression a person would make in a face-to-face conversation. Another compensation Bezuidenhout said people make is parts of sentence deletions. This includes sentence structures such as subjects and punctuation being left out. Words and phrases are also being shortened to a few letters with new acronyms being made up. “1 usually only use “IT for ‘you’ and ‘R’ for ‘are,’ said Kate Mungo, a fourth-year public relations student. Some common shorthand forms of phrases include “LOL” for “laugh out loud,” “BRB" for “be right back” and “G2G” for “got to go." Words such as “night” have been altered to “nite” and words are only capitalized for emphasis. Even “I" is not as important as it once was. The Web site www.nedingo.com is dedicated to ♦ Please see TEXT, page 12 Ravine to plunge into New Brooklana Tavern By CARRIE GIVENS ASSISTANT MIX EDITOR What’s in a band’s name? While watching the third installment of “Back to the Future,” Hunter Young and Josh Holden paused the movie to get some food. When they returned, a sign reading “Clayton Ravine” was on the screen, and the name stuck. “Josh and I looked at each other and decided it sounded cooler as a band name, so we chose it," Young said. That night, Clayton Ravine was born. Clayton Ravine will play at the New Brookland Tavern on Saturday with Angie Aparo and the Infidels. During the last three years, Clayton Ravine has had notable success, playing with Athenaeum, Crossfade, The Gloria Record, Angie Aparo and Flickerstick. Young said the band hopes that “this sort of resume and our longevity along with drawing lots of people will create success.” Young said they hope in the near future to be represented by a major label and be full-time musicians. And the future might come sooner than thought. The band has attracted an impressive following in the Charleston, Columbia and Charlotte areas. Young said their “fans tend to be pretty faithful, and it’s always fun seeing familiar faces when you are on the road.” “It’s amazing to hear people singing alojig to words that we wrote down one nigljt^, because we had a bad week, broke up with our girlfriend, or our PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK Local rock band Clayton Ravine will perform Saturday at New Brookland Tavern. They will open for Angie Aparo and the Infidels. dog dies,” Young said. Clayton Ravines sound has been compared to Fuel, Tonic and O.A.R. Young said the band has also been influenced by “Tool, Something Corporate (we loved piano), Lifehouse ... and local bands such as Dezeray’s Hammer and Treadmill Trackstar.” “We a^ like so many different kinds of music that it was hard to pick a sound, so instead we wrote a bunch of songs which we feel provide variety,” said Young. Originally, Clayton Ravine consisted of guitarists Hunter Young and Jonathan Boone along with drummer Josh Holden. However, the original Clayton Ravine split with Boone, and added bassist Mark ♦ Please see CLAYTON, page 12 CHARLES GUERIN/KRT CAMPUS Christo and Jeanne-Claude’s creation, on display until Feb. 27, is the largest public art display in New York City history. ^ates create 23 miles of art By MIRIAM HILL KRT CAMPUS NEW YORK — To create their huge works of art — the wrapping of Berlin’s Reichstag building, the surrounding of 11 islands in Florida’s Biscayne Bay with swaths of pink polypropylene — the artists Christo and Jeanne-Claude must marshal squadrons of workers, run experiments in wind tunnels and battle bureaucracy, often for decades. So it is perhaps no surprise that their project in Central Park that opens Saturday — 7,500 16-foot gates draped in saffron fabric covering 23 miles of paths — tempts the pair to assert control over every detail. Before an interview^ Jeanne Claude, Christo’s wife, requires that reporters read a section labeled “common errors” on their Web site. During the phone interview, she interrupted to say: “You know you must say you are talking to Christo and Jeanne-Claude.” The reporter mentioned that this required his presence. Jeanne-Claude directed her assistant to put her husband on the phone. “Helloi Philadelphia Inquirer,” said a male voice, laced with the accent of Christo’s native Bulgaria. “I am good but very busy. We have a few days and a hundred things to be done.” Christo is busy finishing drawings for “The Gates,” some of which will ♦ Please see GATES, page 12