December 3, 1996

Rock and Roll High School

Battle of the Bands

Thursday, November 28th marked the 4th annual Colonel Gray High School Battle of the Bands; held inthe quaint little cafeteria for all those willing and able, to en- joy. I was in attendance along with our very own Panther Prints photographer Melissa Buote, and together with “the collective” knownas Supercar, played the role of judges for the evening event. Eight bands — competed in a very diverse and thoroughly satisfying lineup. The real winner was the Charlottetown music scene, which is looking very promising as of late.

The Ewoks took the

. . rw e Entertainment @* The Panther Prints

tainly they were deserving as their quirky non-conventional sound seems to be able to tran- scend an orderly musical for- mula. I’m sure that this trio is much more thrilled by the re- release of the Star Wars tril- ogy, but their performance last

blue ribbon as the band cho- sen best by the judges; cer-

Type O Negative - October Rust

The band kicks off their album with the sound of feedback from an electric guitar. Then some band member jumps in and starts laughing. Each band member introduce themselves and hopes “[we] enjoyed [their] little joke.” They continue by thanking the people who both October Rust, and how “[they] spent a couple of months getting high working on it?

As forthe music, it’s heart pounding, head banging, wall smashing, carpet cleaning, devil seeking crap. The louder you play October Rust the more you’ll understand it. It’s not a yellow belly, soft gurgling rock music. So if your looking for a band that not only rocks but rocklocks, October Rust is what your looking for to kick off the new year.

by Bruce Henry

The Specials

Today’s Specials

Kuff/Virgin

I took a listen to this CD because I was told their

music was a lot like that of No Doubt. Not exactly. True, The. Specials. blend ska/reggae and rock-n’ roll, but the reggae definitely powers through. The album Today's Specials is all cover tunes by the band’s favourite artists, including Bob Marley, the Clash, and even some jazz musicians. The two outstanding tracks on the album were “A Little Bit Me, A Little Bit You”, a remake of a Monkee’s hit and “OO7”. The music is very fun, but I’m nota huge reggae fan. However, I will admit to whistling some of the songs for a while after I listened to the CD. If Bob Marley is your guy, why not give a listen to The Specials?

:*** By Emilie Adams

Greg Flemming of Battle winners ThEwoks

night sparked a “Next Gen- eration” kindatag. These guys are one of those bands that are destined to be on a 7" single. Vinyl is the only way that a recording could truly capture their energy of experimenta- tion. Hopefully they will stay together, as they are but young men ina struggling world full of teen angst...aw, play a sad song for them.

The other bands that performed, and performed well I might add, were dy- namic and offered something different for every set which tickled me pink, thank you very much. Sour, Snag and DCU are all very young, and very talented in their own field of expertise. To say the least, the foundation of the Charlottetown scene has been set and you will eventually see some of the personalities from these less mature bands break-

ing through in the future. The night also showcased some very tight and musical bands such as grunge gods Mono- lith, retro crazed Liphed, and the Raw Overtones who de- livered a song that sounded so much like “Comfortably Numb”, that Karen MacIntyre and I were singing along. The “Battle” was ended by crowd pleasers, the pseudo punk band Watchmaker, and that left the door open for the headliners, Supercar, to take the stage.

The bands were all original and all very enthusi- astic to showcase their talents. The musical style ranged from easy listening to whatever the heck ThEwoks are. I was ex- tremely honoured to be able to judge and came away very impressed by the work that these bands put into their songwriting. I guarantee that you will be hearing some of these names in the not so dis- tant future.

The conclude, | must also give my props to Nicole, Josh and the rest of the gang for putting together such a successful “Battle of the Bands”. The sound system could have been louder, but I suppose that goes without say- ing; | mean, the sound system could always bea little louder. Still, the atmosphere was great, and it was fun to return to my “alma mater” and hook up with all my younger high school homies. To all that were in- volved, congratulations on such a terrific night of music. I sincerely hope that the next one will be as good if not bet- ter than this one certainly was. I'll give it up for Charlottetown and the thriving original band scene, only witha strong, sup- portive scene, can there be an environment that produces such quality music. And re- member, this is only the be- ginning.

EINE SUITS CMH Cie e Amat ee nile

Entertainment Section.

Counting Crows

“Recovering the Satel- lites”

Geffen Records

Picturing yourself driv- ing across the Midwestern United States, passing by all the farm fields, and run down old towns, filled with many a person who has influenced Adam Duritz’s life is easy when you listen to this album. The follow up to August and Everything After is in fact somewhat similar to the first album, in that it is just genuine American alternative rock music. Aside from the fact that a lot of the songs are more upbeat then on the first album, such as the first release, “An- gels of the Silences”, Count- ing Crows have basically stuck to their same successful style, filled with catchy riffs, vibrant choruses, and luscious melo- dies accentuated by Duritz’s unmistakeable voice. This

voice is the bearer of lone- some lyrics thattell us all about

lost loved ones (“Goodnight Elizabeth”), ponderings about the future (“A Long Decem- ber”), and experiences with “stardom” (“Have You Seen Me Lately”). The album is powerful from beginning to end, as the first track, “Cata- pult” launches you into space, to “recover the satellites”, if you will, until the last song, “Walkaways” brings every- thing to a subtle and subdued end. If you like Live, Hootie, Soul Asylum, etc., or the first album by Counting Crows, then this music is for you. And incidently, if you are planning a road trip in the mid-west, then “Recovering the Satel- lites” is a must to accompany your travels. EEK

ToddMacLean

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