October 9, 2007 The Lion’s Eye “aa Addl G Page 7 By Adrienne Showalter Lion’s Eye Staff Writer aus206@psu.edu The Tower Theater is renowned for its incredible acoustics. David Bowie recorded one of his few live albums at the Tower Theater in 1974 and only six years later Paul Simon’s One-Trick Pony tour came and was subsequently bootlegged due to the wonderful sound quality preserved by the venue. The choice of venue was perfect for a band like Inter- pol, who do not simply cre- ate easy to listen to songs with bubble-gum hooks. Unfortunately The Liars, Interpol’s opening band, would have been better off if they’d appeared in front of an audience consisting of their handful of fans at the Theatre of the Living Arts. : The clarity of sound at the Tower offered no help in trying to figure out if there was a recognizable melody in most of their set list. Halfway through their set, the lead singer, Angus An- drew, discussed the band’s last trip to Philadelphia * where no one bought tick- ets to their show, resulting in its cancellation. Perhaps they should have taken the hint. The most entertain- ing aspect of the show was Andrew’s strange form of dancing, which bore more resemblance to an epileptic - seizure than anything else. Julian Gross’s drumming was uninspired, often rely- ing on the same time to the point where it evoked a painful, pulsating headache rather than a beat you can tap your foot to. Perhaps the band wore its obvious inspirations too heavily on their sleeves. Andrew’s vocals tried desperately to convey the same plaintive quality -as Thom Yorke’s (Radiohead), but ended up becoming a warbled, unintelligible mess that could not be heard over the overly mo- notonous thumping of the drums and Aaron Hemp- hill’'s overly distorted guitar - playing. Despite the noise- heavy set list, a little hope for what the band could be sprang up at the very end. Their last song “The Other Side of Mt. Heart Attack,” probably chosen for its crawl-like pace in order to bait those waiting for Interpol, was actually quite beautiful. Without relying on pedal effects and heavy distortion, it proved that Hemphill could play a distinctive and enjoyable guitar rift. : Interpol’s obvious influ- ences are Joy Division, Echo and the Bunnymen, and a host of other mono- tone 80s alternative bands, but the layered sounds help move the band away from being boring. The potential pitfall would be that they'd create a static ‘concert environment, but instead fans could dance and sing along. They opened with “Pioneer to the Falls,” the first track ° on their new album, and it certainly set the tone for the rest of the night. With heavy bass and an erratic, get-up-and-move drum beat, the audience was prompted to move. Fans of the bands previous release were pleased since songs that were not from their new album were singles from “Antics.” Each song sounded as polished as the well-produced as the studio albums. Paul Banks’ sang each song with point-for- point accuracy in compari- son to the albums. The newer songs that Liars Lie About Talent; Interpol Saves the Night missed the mark did drag out the middle of the concert, but since they were backed by the more successful new singles and old favorites, the concert remained enjoyable. The other members of the band moved along the stage exhibiting more life than the typical “emo” shows " that are popular nowa- days. Still the highlight of the evening was the en- core. Older fans enjoyed the songs from their first release “Turn on the Bright Lights.” They played in order “NYC,” “Stella,” and “PDA.” PDA, the band’s first successful single, was elongated and moved into a wonderful crescendo: the perfect way to end an almost perfect night. ae image from interpolnyc.com Radiohead’s Rainbows for All on Oct. 10th By Paul DiPietro Lion’s Eye Staff Writer pad5026@psu.edu Unless you've been hidden under a rock from the rest of the musical world, there's a pretty certain chance that you've heard Radiohead’s ubiquitous “Creep”. The song from way back in 1993 let us know all about how now-possibly-insane singer Thom Yorke was both-a creep and a weirdo, all while guitarist Jonny Green- wood laid down his signa- ture guitar thrashing during the ever-popular chorus. Needless to say, the band hates the song, doesn’t care to play it (or anything else from its album, Pablo Honey) any more, and have made far better music by comparison since the its release. 1995 was met with The Bends, and 1997's OK Computer was considered one of the best albums of the 1990s by much of the media, and the band’s best by a majority of fans. It's been ten years, and during that time, they've had three more to show for it: Kid A (2000), the predomi- nantly electronica-driven dreamscape that re-defined their sound and perhaps even their music base (and this writer's personal favor- ite), Amnesiac (2001), often called the B-side album to Kid A (as both were re- corded at around the same time), although completely different in its style with a few more user-friendly, bluesy tracks, and their most recent effort, Hail to the Thief (2003), an album more similar to OK Comput- er, but encompassing styles of their previous albums. Thus it has been four years since a new album release. Earlier this year it was known that the band were working on their new mate- rial, although their contract with EMI had ended and it was unknown as to what the band would do. News later emerged that a new album had been mastered and was ready to go, although it seemed that it would not be released until early next year. It turned out that the- guesses were wrong. On the night of September 30th (about October 1st in “the UK), a simple note by guitarist Greenwood on the band’s website, Dead Air Space, states “Hello every- one. Well, the new album is finished, and it's coming out in 10 days; We've called it In Rainbows. Love from us all.” The website (www.inrain- bows.com) listed the album, which will be available on October 10th, for down- load. When asked to enter the price, a link next to the empty box states “it's up to you”. Essentially, the band have decided to release a “leak” of the ten track album for as much or little as one will pay for it. On December 3rd, the other option on the website -- a boxset includ- ing two vinyl discs two CDs, and album artwork -- will ship for £40, approximately $80 in US currency. This seems costly; however, aside from the two formats, the second vinyl and CD include eight bonus tracks (presumably B-sides) out- side of the ten tracks on the main album. Word is that the album will be signed with a record company shortly for mass production in January. Needless to say, the early release is a shock to the music industry and could lead to great changes - in the future. Expect a full review of the album in the next edition. the slower segments. . N— Resident Evil: Extinction By Joey DiCamillo Lion’s Eye Staff Writer jld457@psu.edu ZOMBIES!!! Yes, who couldn't love another zombie movie!!! (Well, | guess the people who do not like zombies.) Out in theaters is the third film in the game-to-movie release of the popular game series, Resident Evil. There are a few things though you should prepare yourself in going to see this movie. First of all, paying attention to the story is optional. Second, if you are a fan of the game series, do not tie anything in the movie towards the game. The movie follows its own plot and is only “based” on the game. Finally, fun is the only game in town when watching this movie and there is a lot of enjoyment to be had in watch- ing the zombie blasting extravaganza. After a breakout of the T- Virus, the mass population of earth becomes infected and turn into zom- bies. Not only have the people been infected, but the whole world, too, turning earth into a barren wasteland. The movie follows Alice dodging the ~ Umbrella Corporation, the company who made the T-Virus, all the while trying to figure out who she really is. The film also follows Claire Redfield guarding a caravan of survivors on a continuous run of finding gasoline, food, other survivors, and most impor- tant of all, safety. : The basic story and running of the plot of Extinction is convoluted, but still a bit intriguing, even when it gets a little corny. However, the story is not what moviegoers look for in a zombie film, is it? It's the action, and that is where Resident Evil: Extinction, delivers. In all its gory glory, the action is pretty good. From the shooting of deadly zombies, to rabid mutant dogs, to killer crows, the action is intense. The highlight of the film, however, occurs when the main character Alice pulls out her dual blades and slices and dices her way through hordes of the undead. Even when the story | really starts to slow down, the action revives the movie and makes up for Resident Evil: Extinction | is a confusing yet amusing movie and overall, it delivers a lot of fun to be had. To fans of the games, it is strongly advised to view this movie as a zombie movie separate from the games, yet for some the cameos are still exciting to see. And for anyone who feels that the ending of Extinc- tion leaves too many questions to be rage from google.com . answered, the fourth installment of the Resident Evil movie series is already ® in the works. Resident Evil: Extinction --- 2 1% stars ~ outof4
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