ntertainment
Flaming Lips join the 'Dark Side'
BY DYLAN JOHNSON
STAFF WRITER
DIJSO34PSU.EDU
When I heard The Flaming Lips
were remaking Pink Floyd's album
"Dark Side of the Moon," I almost
threw up in my mouth. Why
would any band ever touch such
a masterpiece of an album? The
Rolling Stone magazine named
Pink Floyd's "Dark Side" number
43 on the 500 greatest albums of all
time! In my mind, any band that
tried to reproduce Pink Floyd's
most successful album was
doomed to fail. But I was wrong.
The Flaming Lips are known for
being original with their eccentric
song and album titles. Their live
shows are also bizarre because of
their use of costumes, puppets,
and even a plastic bubble in which
lead singer Wayne Coyne uses
to walk on top of the audience.
After learning this, I was
interested to see how this version
of Dark Side would turn out.
"The Flaming Lips and Stardeath
and White Dwarfs with Henry
Rollins and Peaches Doing The
Dark Side of the Moon" starts
The
By FARISA PARVEEN
STAFF WRITER
FIPSOO9@PSU.EDU
"Blood maybe thicker than
water, but for those who leave
Islam, blood is spilled as easily as
water," says the former terrorist
Walid Shoebat in his highly
acclaimed part-autobiographical
book "Why We Want To Kill
You." Walid Shoebat talks about
the Islamic terrorist mindset
and how to defeat it. This book
is one of the most didactic and
awe-inspiring book I have read
in years. Who better to elucidate
about the beliefs and actions of
these widespread terrorists than
a former terrorist himself? Walid
Shoebat was born in Bethlehem
of Judea, where he spent the first
33 years of his life hating non-
Muslims, especially the Jews.
out similarly to the original
version with a heartbeat fading
in and different voices talking.
In the newest version, comedian/
musician Henry Rollins recreates
the speaking parts. To me, this
is the downfall of the album. In
the old version the narration
sounded like spontaneous
interviews. However, in
the new version, Rollins'
voice sounds too forced
and emotionless. But as
soon as the music kicked
in, my ears opened up.
"Breathe" has beenrevamped
with a stalking bass line that
is infectious to the brain.
Layered on top of the bass is
a dirty and distorted feedback
that creates the reproduction
of the Floyd's slide guitars.
This effect creates a great
blend of chaotic order. The
next track "On the Run" is
an interlude that has a real
dance-rock feel to it. It
closes out with a loud alarm
(that actually startled me
on first listen) that indicates
it is time for "Time".
One of the coolest moments
of this album is the beginning
jihad against
They believed the Jews were evil
and caused of all their miseries.
His father was Palestinian and
his mother was American. He
became a member of Palestinian
Liberation Organization (PLO)
in his youth, and carried out
several terrorist acts against
Israel.
After entering the USA, he
worked as a counselor for the
Arab Student Organization
at Loop College in Chicago,
continuing his anti-Israel
activities. He joined Muslim
Brotherhood and was trained
for Jihad (Holy War) in
America. In 1993 he converted
to Christianity, after being
challenged by his Catholic wife,
whom he was trying to convert
into Islam. He studied both the
Bible and secular history and
learned that all he was taught
about the Jews and Christians
THE CAPITAL TIMES
of "Time". Heavy breathing and
coughing are looped to create the
beat of the intro to the song. After
the blaring keyboards fade out,
the soft and subtle voice of Coyne
whimpers the lyrics ofa depressing
song. Yet again, the band uses
had been a lie and became an
advocate for Israel and against
terrorism
Printed in the United States.
The point of this book is to help
readers understand the Islamic
distortion and guitar feedback to
create a fuzzy background wall of
sound. However, the best moment
of the album comes during "Great
Gig in the Sky". Ifyou are familiar
with the original version of "Dark
Side," then you know the amazing
mindset, and to grasp what drives
Islamic extremists towards
hatred and violence against
non-Muslims. He also wants to
create awareness of the several
dangers of such fundamentalism
for the Americans.
The book depicts the regrets
Walid feels as he looks back
over 33 years of violence, the
truths he learned regarding the
Jews and Israel, and the lies he
was taught for more than half
his life by his own people.
This book fascinating because
it describes the concepts
of Jihad from the Quranic
and Prophet Muhammad's
teachings, well for the reader
to try to contemplate why these
young men and women carry out
such heinous act in the name of
religious wars.
The book starts off with
the confessions of Walid
vocal work on this track. Well,
The Flaming Lips did it better. On
top of a funky distorted bass, the
high pitch shrills of singer Peaches
tear up the track and really gives
the album a great upbeat song.
One of the most famous songs
from Pink Floyd's album is
"Money," but The Flaming Lips
did not redo this one very well.
The vocal arrangement is the only
thing enjoyable on the track, which
is comparable to Peter Frampton's
vocal effect in "Do You Feel
Like We Do". However, it was
done throughout the entire song
and got repetitive all too quickly.
If you were a fan of Pink Floyd's
original, you may not enjoy this
new-wave rendition of a classic
record. However, if the grooves
in your old 45 are worn out, I
suggest you give The Flaming
Lips' version a try. It will hold
your attention with all of the
new sounds. Some songs are
even better than the original. Of
course, if you are a die-hard Floyd
fan, then it might be hard to sway
your decision. I really enjoyed
hearing an old favorite turn into
something more modern and in
sync with today's generation.
j ihad
Shoebat and extends to various
definitions and the history of
Islamic fundamentalism: which
subdivides to the racist attitudes,
the history of Jihad, the reasoning
behind Jihadist mindset, the
psychological conditioning
and the rewards for performing
Jihad. In the end of the book he
highlights an imperative issue
for all Americans: how to deal
with such fundamentalism that
is spreading like a incurable
cancer today. Shoebat talks
about some of the key measures
for eradicating such violent acts
of terrorism in the United States.
He explains the definition of
God in Islam and other religions
to make people understand how
radical the Jihadist mindset is
and what Americans will need
to take this issue more seriously
and defeat it.