Gran Torino brings love of college towns to Legends

Kara Hodge -Entertainment Beat

Despite popular belief, not everyone that comes out of Knoxville, Tenn., wears an orange T-shirt and chants the University of Tennessee's fight song.

The nine-man band that calls itself Gran Torino will play tomorrow night at Legends, but will be chanting something a little different than the Volunteers' beloved "Rocky Top."

Promoting their third CD, a second studio effort entitled "Two," Gran Torino has swept towns from New England to Texas with its funky style. Blending rock and R&B, the band has added jazz and soul to their sound, making "Two" a hit. "Moments With You," their first successful single, has been in heavy rotation at radio stations in the South and has increased record sales into the five-digit range.

The band formed from the Vols-obsessed college town of Knoxville, Tenn., in the summer of 1995. Gran Torino's horn section was comprised of music majors and the rest played in rock bands.

They came together with the idea of creating a band that could blend equal parts of different musical styles. Chris Ford, lead vocalist and guitarist, said, "My influences range from Bruce Springsteen to Stevie Wonder, from Herbie Hancock to Radiohead. It's just a big mix of sounds."

The other members include Steve Decker on lead guitar and vocals, Todd Overstreet on bass, Whit Pfohl on drums, and Scott Pederson, Jason Thompson, Pee-Jay Alexander and Dexter Murphy as the horn section.

Gran Torino is known for its live performances, as most college bands are. Their energy has packed clubs in the Boone area for years. In fact, the first gig the band had in Boone was at Klondike Cafe.

"It was great-- fifty tickets and the place was packed," said Ford. When asked why Gran Torino keeps coming to our area, Ford said, "We love college towns. Boone was one of the first ones to pick up on our fan base from the Carolinas."

"Two," which follows "One" and "Live at the Chameleon Club," is an 11-track CD that is a progression from the first two releases, combining the momentum of their live shows with the production enhancement from the studio. "Moments With You," has computer-enhanced vocals, and drum machines are added to the other songs to bring new sounds to the group's personality. "Are You Living?" is their second release, and their fall tour will be promoting the groovy, jazzy tune.

The good stuff: The other songs on "Two" are all high energy and a mature step from the original sound the band fronted in the beginning stages of its career. The instrumental tunes "Coup D'Etat" and "Outro" show the bandÕs talents by showcasing each instrument. Other highlights include cool bass lines on "Bound" and "Days of the Tested."

The not-so-good stuff: The horn section gets repetitive at the beginning of at least four sets.

Overall, Gran Torino is a hit. Their sound is unique because they don't insist on mixing too many sounds, and they make rock and R&B fun again. They're young and original, and they put on extraordinarily good performances.

Go see them at Legends Friday night at 9:30 p.m. Tickets are $6 for students and can be purchased at the Information Desk in Plemmons Student Union or at the door for $7. The show is B.Y.O.B. (six-pack limit) with a valid ID.

For more information on the concert, call Legends at 262-3032. For more information on Gran Torino, check out their website at www.grantorino.com.

Ian Hutchinson - Entertainment Beat

What is a contra dance? Who are Victor Essiet and the Mandators? While these two things may have nothing in common, they are two of the most diverse events to take place Saturday in Boone.

The Appalachian Heritage Council will be hosting a contra dance at Legends this Saturday from 8-11 p.m.

Tickets to this non-alcoholic event are $2 for students and $4 for non-students. The dance will feature the music of the Fever City Boys and caller Nancy Mamlin will be present.

Victor Essiet and the Mandators are a reggae group hailing from Nigeria and they will be playing at Rafters the same evening. For show times and cover charge information, call 264-7020.

Now, you probably want to know what a contra dance is. The answers you will get are bound to vary. One person might tell you that it is a test of endurance.

Another person might tell you a contra dance is a great way to meet people.

These answers aren't the wrong ones, but to find out what a contra dance is, you must experience one for yourself.

In essence, a contra dance is an informal version of a square dance and the dance form itself comes from New England.

The dances are primarily influenced by Celtic and old-time music, although the kinds of music can vary from place to place.

Still confused? Don't be, because caller Nancy Mamlin will be present to help clear things up. She'll teach you the difference between a "grapevine," "swinging" and a "promenade."

A Legends contra dance is everything that is mentioned above. It is a great way to meet people and when it comes to a contra dance, you will meet everyone at some point. It is great exercise and lots of fun.

Are you curious who Victor Essiet and the Mandators are?

This reggae group is one of Nigeria's best kept secrets. They have been known to play to audiences of over 80,000 people. The band's sound has rock, R&B and African influences and their music offers positive messages about issues such as human and environmental conditions.

The band has released several albums including, "Crisis" and "Crucial." The band is presently touring in support of "Crucial," an album that has a great diverse sound. Some of the best songs on the album include "Rat Race," "Fallow Me" and a remake of John Lennon's "Watching the Wheels."

If you're looking for something different this Saturday, both Legends and Rafters are offering breaks from the standard rock band or rave.

Be sure to take advantage of these unique entertainment options.

Material Girl stumbles back onto the scene with 'Music'

Ian Hutchinson -Entertainment Beat

Turn up the volume and lower your standards, kiddies, the Material Girl has just settled for the next best thing. If you listen real close, you might hear hell freezing over.

If Madonna is known for anything in her career, it is for challenging social conventions and breaking new ground. Those of us who grew up with Madonna would never expect anything less than the best from her.

With each album, Madonna would turn over a new leaf and explore new musical territory. Her prior release "Ray of Light" reinvented the Queen of Pop.

Sadly, her new album "Music" fails to break any new ground. What's incredibly tragic is that "Music" is about as socially challenging as any of the latest bubblegum pop albums.

"Music" is by far the most unimaginative and uninspired album Madonna has ever released. If "Ray of Light" was a musical feast, "Music" is the stale, vitaminless, microwaved leftovers. It honestly sounds like this album is a compilation of what songs didn't make "Light."

The album hits every dance cliche in the DJ handbook. In "Nobody's Perfect," Madonna's voice meets cyberspace. Gee, how ... original. Didn't Cher, Eiffel 65 and a million other DJs already do that? On "Impressive Instant," Madonna whispers, which is actually more of an annoyance than a benefit to the song. She gets bilingual on "Paradise" and her voice is once again beamed through the Internet.

"Runaway Lover" is a clumsy attempt to blend '80s synthesizer with drum 'n' bass. " Paradise" is so nagging and whiny that it makes a root canal sound like fun. "Don't Tell Me" has a bothersome rhythm with no focus and seems more like your CD player is skipping than it does a song.

The title track "Music" is soaked in tired, overused beats and filled with played-out catch phrases like, "Hey Mister DJ, put a record on/ I wanna dance with my baby," and "Music makes the people come together."

Listening to this album, one can't help but think that "Music" just doesn't fit Madonna's musical M.O. "Ray of Light" had a beat and a brain behind it-- "Music" has a beat, but no sense to it.

The only good tracks on the album are "I Deserve It" and "Gone," which are surprisingly focused around an acoustic guitar and a drum machine. The strongest tracks are the most simple ones that actually focus on Madonna's voice; the rest of the album is marred by over-thought, techno-rave nonsense.

Noting that the likes of William Orbit graced the production of "Music," one would think that the dance element of the album would be impressive.

Instead, the co-produced Orbit tracks, "Runaway Lover" and "Amazing," fall flat. This album would have benefited greatly if DJs like Moby or Roni Size had had a hand in the production.

Those DJs make sure to do nothing that takes away from the vocal element of a song. At several points in "Music," it feels as though you lose Madonna and gain a laptop.

If you like Madonna, reeeaaally like Madonna, then you'll probably like "Music." If you have high standards for Madonna, you'll be let down.

Kara Hodge - Entertainment Beat

Appalachian State University alumnus and author Scott Nicholson has received national recognition. His book "Thank You for the Flowers," released by Parkway Publishers, contains 13 stories of suspense and imagination that have previously been published in national literary magazines and anthologies.

Sharyn McCrumb, author of "The Ballard" books, called Nicholson "a gifted writer with wisdom and imagination." Author Kevin J. Anderson said, "Nicholson's stories have their own passion and heart. He has a fresh, true voice that will affect you."

This fresh voice won the Hubbard Gold Award in 1999, the top prize in the International Writers of the Future contest. He was also First Runner-Up for the 1999 Darrell Award, and his stories have been recommended for the Stoker and Nebula awards.

"Thank for the Flowers" covers a variety of subjects from a Civil War ghost story called "Three-Dollar Corpse," to "Dead Air," in which a late-night DJ has an open line to a female serial killer. A young girl and her deceased friend's ghost both have a crush on the friend's boyfriend in a story titled "In the Heart of November." And in "Thirst," a girl's tears are the keys to ending a long drought.

Focusing on the supernatural, Nicholson said in a recent interview, "When I write in a fantasy world where the borders between life and death is nebulous or non-existent, or when I use characters that don't necessarily obey the so-called laws of nature, then I have a blank and endless canvas. Even when I'm writing a crime or mystery story, I like to throw in a few curves."

His stories use children's characters and adult themes to convey the magic and complexities of life and death. Innocence is used as a tool to reinvent the mysteries of childhood. The worries of children, like being loved and accepted, add to the simple stories.

Nicholson works as a journalist for The Mountain Times in Boone and holds creative writing degrees from both Appalachian and the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. He is currently marketing several novels and is working on a screenplay. Nicholson also operates a writers' website at http://www.hauntedcomputer.com. When asked if he thought his work was a success, Nicholson said, "What's more important than being a famous writer and selling lots of books is being a good family member and contributing to the community.

"Doing right in those rare instances when the differences between right and wrong are clear. If a little bit of that belief comes through my work, then I'm willing to call it a success."