April 22, 1997

High Country music scene is vastly underrated
Viewopint
Matt Russ
Writing Coach

Recently I was on Hilton Head Island enjoying the hot sun, since it obviously isn't hot enough around here yet. While I was there, some friends of mine and I went to a place called Hilton Head Brewing Co. where they sold cheap beer at expensive prices and expensive beer at outrageous prices. They also had some live music, which was the primary reason for our attendance.

There was no cover charge, so that was a positive. However, if I had paid a cover for the quality of music we heard, I would have been more angry than I was when the bartender told me it'd be $3.25 for a bottle of Budweiser.

The band was playing on a large deck outside the bar where a mass of preppy/yuppies-to-be were "groovin" to the music; music which sounded like a repulsive breeding of the Dave Matthews Band and the Lemonheads.

What made it worse were the people surrounding us. Polo-clad young men with gel in their hair, thrusting their pelvises in the asses of young women who appeared as though they just stepped out of a J. Crew catalog, danced as if they had never danced before. Literally. I felt like I was in Chapel Hill.

This brings me to my point. A disappointment in the music made me realize that I often walk away disappointed after some local band somewhere down the mountain has tried to pull me onto their little bandwagon headed for the future of music.

Not to say that all music outside this atmosphere of breeding talent is lame, but let's be honest. It's just not the same.

The music scene here in Boone is one of the most excellent, up and coming areas in young musical talent of all genres, and it doesn't get near the credit it deserves. The mountain air holds claim to musicians ranging from bluegrass to blues to rock to jazz.

There is an extension beyond that "we wannabe cool," and "we want everybody to dig us" attitude that seems to be the trend with a lot of new bands, afraid to experiment and go beyond that oozing Velveeta pop sound.

The band that played at Hilton Head Brewing Co. (I honestly cannot remember their name) claimed to be from Athens, yet in all actuality they really weren't.

Athens has indeed been the Mecca of college bands, but that is part of the problem. It has become way too hip to say you're from Athens; a sad commercialization of something that was once so pure.

As I stood among the future yuppies of America, with mixtures of "Ck Be" and "Eternity" wafting under my nose, longing for the familiar smell of petchuli and body odor, I fully realized the superior uniqueness of Boone's music scene.

In the area of rock/alternative, we have Sticky in the process of releasing a CD on a small label. In blues and bluegrass, we have Snake Oil Medicine Show and the Blue Rags who have both recently signed record deals.

We have the best rhythm and blues band this side of the Allman Brothers in Chickenfat. Doc Watson, who lives just down the road, plays here regularly. And the list does indeed go on and on.

As we left Hilton Head Brewing Co., prior to the conclusion of the performance, I wondered if future bands will tell the crowd they're from Boone, whether or not they really are. I assume some will, for Boone bands will begin to venture places you thought they'd never go. Let's just hope a bunch of pretty-haired boys from Winston or Chapel Hill don't try to pull the wool over everyone's eyes by saying they're from the mountains.

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On-campus residents make opinions known
Buest Editorial
Kim Vuttenhove
CRSA President

Security has been a hot topic on campus lately. Ever since the incidents this past year, and the action taken by Chancellor Borkowski to make this a safer campus, students have been talking about this issue.

Well, there seems to be even more to talk since residence hall visitation was mentioned at the first forum held on March 25. Students have been in an uproar about visitation. Yes, it is true that visitation is an issue being discussed by both the Task Force on Student Life and the Campus Security Committee. However, no recommendation or final decisions have yet been made.

On April 3, a voting issue was brought to the Campus Resident Student Association (CRSA) body. This body is composed of student representatives, one from each residence hall on campus. These students represent their halls' Resident Student Association.

This voting issue was with regards to visitation in the residence halls. There are currently several halls on campus who have a 24-hour visitation policy. A few other halls have certain limits set on the times visitors are allowed to be in the buildings.

In the last two weeks, there have been numerous misunderstandings about who wrote the forms and where the options came from. If you were one of the lucky ones to receive e-mail about it, you know exactly what I am talking about. I would like to clarify any questions as well as clear up any of these misunderstandings.

First of all, the voting issue was written by me and my advisor. It was intended to give the residence halls a voice, one that would or would not be listened to, but one that would definitely be heard. The representatives took the form back to their residence halls where they voted on, and then ranked the following options:

Option 1) Sunday-Saturday:
Begin- 10 a.m. End- 2 a.m.

Option 2) Sunday-Saturday:
Begin- 12 p.m. End- 2 a.m.

Option 3) Sunday-Thursday:
Begin- 12 p.m. End- 2 a.m.

Friday- Saturday
Begin- 10 a.m. End- 12 a.m.

These options were chosen at random but were primarily based on the system we had in the halls a

few years ago. The halls were then allowed to vote, at the beginning of the year, for the type of visitation that they would have for that year. In giving these options, the representatives were told they were not limited to these options and they could come up with their own option on which to vote.

Option # 1 was ranked first for Cone, Eggers, Hoey, Justice and Winkler. Other halls added their own top rank as follows: Belk, Sun-Thur 10 a.m.-2 a.m., Fri-Sat 24 hours; Coffey, 7 days a week- 7 a.m.-2 a.m.; East, Fri-Sat 7 a.m.-3:30 a.m., Sun-Thurs 7 a.m.-2 a.m.; Lovill, Sun-Thurs 12 p.m.-2 a.m., Fri-Sat 24 hours.

These will be listed in the same manner and given to task force members as well as the Chancellor.

The intent of this voting issue was for the students to realize that their voices can be heard if they take the time to show they care.

I was very pleased with the way some students reacted. It brought more attention to one of the many issues that the Task Force and the Committee are having to discuss and decide upon. Neither of these bodies have made their recommendations to the Chancellor.

As of early this week, they have not yet decided upon what these recommendations will be. This voting issue was sent out so that if a recommendation for a change in the visitation policy is made, There is some information as to what the residence halls would prefer.

As students, we need to have our voices heard if we want things to change or remain the same. I would like to thank the halls that participated in the process and showed that they care. However, just because this voting took place does not mean further action will be taken.

The information is simply out there if it is needed. We have no control over who will listen.

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Our Opinion

Curb and leash your pooch please

If you've walked around the Appalachian campus at least once this year you've probably noticed something that resembles that scene from Dances With Wolves where there is a giant stampede of Buffalo that tears up a swath of land wider than Sanford Mall.

The only difference is that here at Appalachian it's not buffalo, it's dogs. Sanford Mall is their favorite stomping ground.

It seems like every time you walk out the door of the cafeteria or the Student Union, there's some kind of dog standing there looking at you wide-eyed and starved for attention or food... or both.

And although sometimes they are leashed, more often than not, these dogs are unleashed and free to roam around campus and the rest of Boone for that matter, as they please.

Although most dogs are usually cute and playful and worth a minute or two to stop and give them a little attention, this army of unleashed dogs can pose a problem.

For one thing these dogs, even the nice ones, are not exactally fun when they get inside buildings and wreak havoc. Because many of them hang around doorways, it is not impossible that this could happen. Just imagine if some hungry wild animal got into the food court and couldn't be caught by the staff. It would be rather annoying and a waste of time for the campus police to have to be called in to catch a dog.

Secondly, these dogs can leave quite an irritating mess for people walking around, especially in grassy areas like the Mall. While this does not really hurt anyone, it is annoying and no one likes to step in something that is going to draw attention to them in the next classroom they have to sit in.

Finally, some of these nomadic dogs are not always friendly. Although it is uncommon, no one wants to run into a mean dog while walking somewhere by themself and have to try to run away or risk being attacked and possibly bitten. There are at least a few students here who are afraid of dogs.

Everyone knows that getting bit by a dog can mean possible exposure to diseases such as rabies. At the very least a dog bite will probably require a trip to the doctor and a shot even if the dog does not have rabies.

Basically, the owners of these dogs need to take some responsibility for their pets and put them on unleashes even if it may be a little uncomfortable for the dogs.

This campus and the rest of this town should not be some kind of petting zoo where animals are allowed to roam around and bother people.

Look at it this way, some prospective student or his parents may not think too highly of Appalachian if on their campus tour they step in dog stuff or see a pack of dirty animals running around the campus as if it were a trailer park.

We love animals, just not the domestic kind who run freely while they should be leashed and curbed.

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