University of South Carolina Libraries
C, « — m m m m B B B _B_^fl A ▼ -1,1. B ^ Page 7 _:-:-: Special to THE GAMECOCK Cameron Diaz stars in ‘In Her Shoes’ with Toni Collette and Shirley MacLaine portraying intricacies of sisterhood and growing up. ‘In Her Shoes’ walks straight Cameron Diaz, Toni Collette give characters, real-life situations soul in newest'chick flick’ (Tlarjone Riddle for the gamecock “In Her Shoes” will delight viewers with a perfectly assembled cast and compelling story about the intricacies of the relationship between two sisters. Cameron Diaz stars as Maggie, the wild, irresponsible sister of straight laced, uptight attorney Rose, played by Toni Collette. The night Rose begins a thrilling affair with one of her co-workers, Rose has to rescue a drunken Maggie from her 10-year high school reunion. Rose begrudgingly takes Maggie in after their father and stepmother kick Maggie out. Rose personifies the caring but overbearing sister, pushing Maggie to seek employment and get her life together. Maggie gets an unflattering job grooming dogs but still disappoints Rose. Fed up more with her own mediocre life than her sister’s irresponsibility, Rose demands that Maggie move out. Subsequently, an angry Maggie seduces Rose’s prospective boyfriend, and Rose finds the two together in her bed. Rose lividly forces Maggie to leave, and Maggie, feeling guilty and dejected, decides to go to Florida to find their long-lost grandmother Ella, played by Shirley MacLaine. Maggie and Rose’s lives change in ways they don’t expect-Rose learns to lighten up and enjoy life, quitting her job as a lawyer and becoming a dog walker while Maggie finally accepts responsibility for her own life and begins to grow up. Rose dates and gets engaged to one of her former HER SHOES' • 9 Special to THE GAMECOCK The Forty Fives from Atlanta play vintage rock ’n’ roll at the event. Hristen Truesdale FOR THE GAMECOCK On Saturday, American rock ’n’ roll will mix with German culture in an event that Marty Fort, Entreat guitarist, sums up in two words: good times. In its third year, the Oktoberfest “Bavarian Bash” will be played host to by Art Bar on Park Street. Students can enjoy six bands for only $3, plus authentic German food and beer. Music kicks off at 5:30 p.m. with an outdoor performance by Eclecta Villain. “We will have something to please everyone,” Fort said. “The Forty Fives from Atlanta are a rocking band that plays vintage rock ’n roll similar to the White Stripes. Also on the bill are indie local heroes Rockefeller Horsecollar, The Void — A Black Sabbath Tribute, Gonzalez from Atlanta — who rock hard like Clutch or Queens of the Stone Age, . Eclecta Villain from Chapel Hill, and of course, Entreat.” The Forty Fives, scheduled to perform at 10 p.m., have been together since 1998. This hellraising, rough-and-tumble outfit is features guitarist Bryan G. Malone, bassist Mark McMurtry, drummer Adam Renshaw and Hammond organ player Trey Tidwell. Having already released one album in 2000, the band hit the road and began opening for bands such as Link Wray, Andre Williams and the Fleshtones. Why do they do it? As the band’s Web site says, “because someone has to make a stand against the current dreadful state of ‘modern popular music.’”Some reviewers agree. “Somewhere between the Remains on a serious amphetamine jag and The Makers without the phony tough-guy schtick (and a lot more talent), the Forty Fives are serious-as-a-heart-attack contenders for the trash-rock BASH • 9 German food, beer, music - offer students international fun, chance to meet people Special to THE GAMECOCK The Bavarian Bash features various artists and international food Saturday at Art Bar. Scottish songwriters mimic Bowie Franz Ferdinand reinvents decade with ‘80s-pop-influenced lyrics, music 9 Jim Farber KRTCAMPUS The members of Franz Ferdinand might be the only people in the universe who don’t hear a whiff of ’80s influence in their music. “It’s ironic,” Alex Kapranos, front man, said. “I couldn’t stand the ’80s when I was living in them. I would fantasize about living in the ’60s or the ’20s or even the 19th century. But just because we’ve got these short-back-and-sides haircuts, we became (known as) an ’80s band.” That’s not quite the only reason. The Scottish band’s jerking beats, scissoring guitars and manic vocals bring to mind some of the ’80s most groundbreaking bands, including XTC and Gang of Four. But the comparisons Special to THE GAMECOCK Franz Ferdinand might have grown up in the ’80s, but they say they do not want to be known as an “ '80s band” l ' 1 , ! might not be made so often were there not a rash of successful and similarly inspired rock bands out there now, such as the Killers, Kaiser Chiefs and Interpol. Kapranos says his group never heard records by Gang of Four, the group they’re most often associated with. “We read about them in all our reviews. Then when we checked them out we thought, ‘What a great band. What a radical approach to playing,”’ Kapranos said. Thankfully, Franz Ferdinand has their own approach to the goosed-up style associated with the ’80s, especially on their second CD, “You Could Have It So Much Better.” This time, the four-man band from Glasgow broadens its influences to include a wider range of British pop sources like David Bowie’s “Boys Keep Swinging” and 1960s Kinks. Kapranos says he admires Bowie, not just for his music “but for the way he evolved. Compare ‘Ziggy Stardust’ to ‘Low’ to ‘Young Americans.’ It’s astonishing that it’s the same guy doing all that music. None of his contemporaries were so bold.” The Kinks connection is evident in the quirky, melodic range of Franz Ferdinand’s “Walk Away.” “(The Kinks’) Ray Davies had that great symbiotic relationship between the music and the emotional content of the lyric,” Kapranos explained. “Think of‘Waterloo Sunset.’ It had all those great backing vocals and that change of key from major to minor that gives it such soaring poignancy.” Kapranos’ lyrics tend to be more cryptic. “I don’t want to pass the masses an easy answer,” he said. “What sets lyrics and poetry apart from prose writing is the fact that there’s room for personal interpretation.” He says he likes to mix unexplained elements of his personal life with statements that speak directly to the listener. “I love having my own meaning for a song and then only later finding out what it was really about,” he explained. “Like (Bob Dylan’s) ‘Ballad of a Thin Man,’ I listened to it for so long, loving the imagery and not knowing it was about a real guy. That makes it magic.” Franz Ferdinand whipped up their own magic around themselves from the start of their career. They developed a scene at an abandoned warehouse, The Chateau, in Glasgow. There, they hosted rave-like events that featured both music and art. Two of the group’s members met at the Glasgow School of Art. PRBnZ • 8 www. dailygamecock. com Special to THE GAMECOCK British indie group releases album recorded in basement, “Thunder, Lightning, Strike.” This is the band's second album. The Go! Team gets big cheers Adam Carter FOR THE GAMECOCK It is difficult to come by uniquely diverse music such as the music produced by British indie group The Go! Team. It is so far off-base, in fact, that any criticism of their debut album “Thunder, Lightning, Strike” will likely end in, “What on earth is that?” Though they did strike a deal with a major label to mass-produce the album, The Go! Team is unquestionably indie, producing the album in moms basement. Literally. This is about as weird as good indie music can get. Call it genre prostitution. The scarcity of vocals is the most striking feature. After the third or fourth song, it’s tempting to make up lyrics to go along with the music. The Go! Team’s ability to entice even the average listener is quickly established. The first song introduces the album as a happy collaboration of dance tracks, horns and disco-style drum beats. Beginning with a sound sample from what seems to be an inner-city schoolyard with an Tenm • 8