'A Place of Peace':
Leos' art is both soothing and dazzling
By VICTORIA JAFFE
Collegian Arts Writer
“It’s not so much the subject, but
how you see the subject,” photo
journalist Ed Leos said about his
exhibit, A Place of Peace, currently
on display through July 7 at the
Douglas Albert Gallery.
A Place of Peace is primarily
composed of photographs taken out
side at the Boalsburg Military Mu
seum grounds. The black and white
handprinted photos get their impact
from Leos’ creative capturing of
lights and shadows. What might be
considered dreary or depressing
subject matter is transformed into
a subtle play of lights and darks.
“1918” shows a tombstone in hon
or of a man from the 108th Machine
Gun Battalion. It does not emit the
eerie feeling of a grave, but rather a
calm, soothing tone. Hand-colored
red flowers add a dab of rosy color
to the photo and interact with the
mixture of lights.
The other two pieces in this exhib
it that Leos hand-colored are “Ge
ranium" and ‘‘Old
Glass.” “Geranium” is not a realis
tic rendering of a common house
plant, but a startling contrast of
bright green leaves glistening in a
ray of sunshine, against pale gray
tree trunks in the background and a
black-shadowed red clay pot on the
windowsill.
“Old Glass” also has a dazzling
lights effect as the green, yellow
and orange colors of the outdoors
pale next to the refraction of light
from the window glass. Leos devel
oped it as a black and white photo
and then used transparent oils to
create an almost surreal look, gal
lery owner Douglas Albert said.
“This also adds a touch of realism
that some people don’t see in black
and white,” he added.
Albert described Ed Leos, who
was a professor of photojournalism
Mitch Easter finds that big plans aren't easily carried out
By PAT GRANDJEAN
Collegian Arts Writer
“Nothing is easy, some things take
time” sings Mitch Easter in “Fell,” a
song off his recent album release Big
Plans for Everybody. And though he
may not have anticipated it, those
words apply perfectly to his attempts
to complete the record and reestabl
ish his band, Let’s Active.
“This past year has been really
different,” he admitted. “This record
was delayed it was supposed to
come out last fall, then it was sup
posed to come out in January, then it
got held to March. I just couldn’t
stand working on (it) for months and
months I mean, what can you do?”
“It was kind of frustrating because
I just wanted to get it out. (But) what
happened when the release date was
held off was that some things already
recorded stayed as is, then I recorded
a few songs that got added. So there
are some songs that were written
later that I’m really glad are on
there. Though (the band) sort of did
lose some momentum ’cause we
didn’t play much last year.”
Not that there was much of a band
to play with, anyway. In the two
years since the appearance of Let’s
Active’s last album Cypress, the
group’s two other original members
bassist Faye Hunter and drummer
Sara Romweber dropped out to
pursue individual interests.
What followed was a long period of
realignment that has resulted in an
expanded line-up, with Eric Marshall
on drums, music journalist Angie
Carlson on guitar and keyboards, and
Dennis Ambrose (formerly in a band
called Crossfire Choir) on bass. The
quartet was finally assembled this
year, in time for an international tour
that began at the end of May and will
bring Let’s Active to Philadelphia in
late July.
As a result, Big Plans turned out to
be largely a one-man project, despite
the presence of Marshall and Carlson
on some of the tracks. Easter wasn’t
at all daunted by the challenge of
completing the recording and produc
tion of the album himself.
“In the original band, with me and
the two girls I had a lot more
experience than they did. I would
make demos of the songs (on Cypress
and an earlier E.P., afoot ) and they
would learn stuff off the de
mos ... We couldn’t go into the stu
dio and do things over and over and
make progress because the band pre
tty much operated at a certain level.
We either got it right away or we
didn’t,” he said.
“This project was more in control
things as they went along were just
adding up better. I didn’t want to fool
with the political thing of having a lot
Ed Leos’ “Greek Orthodox Church” photograph reveals all the small-town simple charm of its inconspicuous
subject. It is one of the works on display in his exhibit, A Place of Peace, now showing at the Douglas Albert Gallery.
at the University from 1962-1978 and the gut” after seeing all the men in
now resides in Lemont, as an “elo- their 20s who gave their lives for
quent photographer who brings out their country. Two stones set in the
the beauty in subtle scenes rather rear wall of the shrine really made
than going for the high drama.” an impact, he said. The stones
This subtle beauty is evident in the mark the memory of two men, a
Boalsburg Military Museum pic-, first lieutenant and a captain who
tures, and it is not surprising that were both killed at the same time
Leos visits the shrine about four and in the same place —on Nov. 11,
times a week. He goes to escape the 1918, the last day of World War I.
noise of the “city” and can almost “These were two young men who
compare the Boalsburg shrine to had a lot to look forward to and then
New York’s Central Park, Leos were killed; the place has a deeper
said. (Leos is originally from New meaning than most people realize,”
York.) Leos said.
Leos said that he was “hit right in
of people on each track ... I figured,
if it worked okay with just me on it,
then why not use it? By the time it
was finished, it sounded there. It
wasn’t real hard to mix,” he added.
The final product is an elaborate,
colorful panorama that recalls the
pop experimentation of the 1960’s and
’7os, from the use of psychedelicized
backwards guitar on “Writing the
Book of Last Pages” to the ripping
Led Zeppelin-style leads on “Route
67.” Big Plans is certainly dramati
cally different from both the murky
and claustrophobic Cypress and
afoot, which sounded brighter but
tended to recycle “British invasion”-
inspired riffs ad infinitum.
However clever he might have
been, until now Easter didn’t seem to
have much capacity to engage the
listener’s ear track after track. This
album changes that, probably be
cause it more fully reflects his love of
musical lunacy and his own range of
influences.
In part, these include the Beatles,
Rolling Stones and Jimi Hendrix, as
Easter first started playing guitar in
1967, when he was 12 yedrs old. “The
summer I started playing guitar was,
like, the year every kid got a guitar. I
really did always like records and
stuff, but I didn’t know anything
about music. It was such a social
thing just the best. If you were
horrible at sports, like me, then you
could do that.”
“Not too long after I started I met a
guy who knew all the Hendrix songs,
and I got into a band with him. It was
just incredible. He was a really good
guitar player it made it all seem
real mysterious and great. The music
I’d played was insipid stuff anybody
could work up, and then all of a
sudden we were getting feedback and
everything,” he enthused. “As things
have come along, I dug ’em. Now I
look back and sort of like ’em all.”
Easter also confessed that he
“likes” all of the songs on his new
album, though his feelings about
which tunes worked out the best seem
to depend on what day of the week it
is. “All of the songs are close to me in
some way,” he noted, “like having a
bunch of dogs, and you like each one
of them for different things. One day
I’ll just. like ‘Route 67’ ’cause it’s
stupid and fast, another day I’ll like
‘Won’t Go Wrong’’cause it’s
dreamy.”
His recent work is more cautiously
optimistic and romantically direct
than past efforts, which reflected
great interpersonal disappointment
and cynicism. Much of Big Plans’
grace derives from the fact that for
the first time on record, Easter
seems positively unsmug.
“(There’s) a lot of stuff in there
Leos does not impose a super-
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Forced to sit down and take time off from recording, producing and touring, Mitch Easter ponders the future of regional
rock music. When he looks Into the crystal ball, what does he see?
that has to do with not really knowing
if this is for real, or if it’s gonna last.
‘Talking to Myself’ ” — 1 which be
came popular with WPSU-FM listen
ers in late spring “is about having
been sort of unhappy, and starting to
feel better. Feeling better is a confus
ing state to be in, ’cause you’re so'
used to the other stuff. That’s what
it’s all about,” he said.
He prefers writing songs in the first
person, which makes them more per
sonal and yet allows him ways to
detach himself. “There’s a certain
amount of potential ickiness involved
you can be just really embarrass
ing or pompous or stupid, and you
need to watch out for that. On the
other hand it’s great, because when
you write a song, nobody knows
whether it’s true, or whether the “I”
heavy meaning upon his photos,
they are more likely to inspire indi
vidual contemplation in each on
looker. His “Greek Orthodox
Church” photograph takes an in
conspicuous church in Lemont and
reveals all of its small-town simple
charm. As the sun hits the front of
the building and the white clouds
rest overhead, the effect is serene
and still, yet full of life;
The Douglas Albert Gallery’s
summer hours are : Tuesday,
Wednesday, and Saturday from 11
a.m. to 5:30 p.m., and Thursday and
Friday from 11 a.m. to 8 p.m.
tills
in the song is a real person or another
character ... I figure romance is the
classic subject matter of pop music.
There’s an endless number of ways to
talk about it. It used to be possible to
write about Norse gods and stuff, but
you can’t really do that anymore.”
Critics have claimed that the sound
of Big Plans is almost too lush that
it veers dangerously close to a “made
for Top 40 airplay” enterprise. Eas
ter finds this accusation ironic. “This
is not a fancy studio record at all,” he
insisted. “It was done on 16 tracks
which is like the format of 1971. I
think this album has a ‘hit’ sound, but
it’s a far cry from the mainstream.
It’s not exactly retro, but not exactly
now-sounding, either,” he said.
“I do think there’s a lot of stupid
values in the way things are put
Soprano soloist Young
brings intimate warmth
to classical evening
By RON SWEGMAN
Collegian Arts Writer
As the lights dimmed and atten
tion turned towards conductor
Markand Thakar and the Penn
State Philharmonia Saturday
night, a feeling of intimacy settled
in, which did not relinquish its hold
on the audience until the evening
was over. This second in a series
of three Schwab Auditorium con
certs was highlighted by the oper
atic vocals of guest soprano Eddye
Pierce Young, who is currently a
visiting lecturer at the University.
Her emotional performance in the
second act seemed to absorb both
listeners and performer alike.
review
The mood was set quickly with
the performance of Richard Wag
ner’s Siegfried Idyll, a piece domi
nated by swelling strings and
beautiful melodies from the wood
winds. More subdued and less
dynamic than most of Wagner’s
other famous works, it created a
warm, romantic feeling, which let
the audience sit back and relax
rather than cling to the edge of
their seats. As it slowly faded to an
end, the listener was caught up in
a dreamy spell, which would last
the entire evening.
Next came a wonderful perfor
mance of Wolfgang Amadeus Mo
zart’s Exsultate Jubilate, a motet
composed during that composer’s
last visit to Italy. The opening
movement was bright and full of
energy. Young, wearing a bright
green dress and smiling to the
audience, sang rolling arpeggios
with ease, although at times her
voice seemed muted by the strings
accompanying her.
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together right now,” he observed of
mainstream record production. “I
don’t want to make one of those Night
Ranger records I wouldn’t even
know how. I just got a 24-track ma
chine at my studio, just so I can be
more compatible with other studios.”
“His studio” just happens to be The
Drive-In in Winston-Salem, N.C.,
which Easter built in the garage of
his parents’ home. Over the years,
regional bands who have feared that
their record companies might just
pair them with a producer who would
turn them into Night Ranger have
flocked to Easter’s place in almost
the same way that huddled masses
yearning to breathe free once immi
grated to the Statue of Liberty. For
Easter, who has produced albums by
R.E.M., the Windbreakers, Game
The Daily Collegian
Monday, June 30, 1986
It was during the slower, recita
tive sections of the piece that
Young’s virtuoso soprano shone
most brightly; Her emotive vocals
and quivering vibrato lulled the
audience into contentment. She
appeared to .be singing to each
individual rather than the audi
ence as a whole. The intimate
atmosphere she created continued
on into the final section, which,
despite it’s endless repetition of
one word, “Alleluia,” never be
came boring or monotonous.
The evening concluded with a
performance of Franz Shubert’s
Symphony no. 3 in D Major. Writ
ten by the composer in 1815 at the
age of 18, it is not performed as
often as some of his other sympho
nies. The Philharmonia did an
excellent job of bringing this sel
dom-heard piece to life.
The opening sections of this
work reminded one of Mozart’s
typically light and airy works, as
the clarinets, flutes, and french
horns combined to produce a feel
ing that suggested that compos
er’s influence. As the piece
progressed, the cellos and bass
took control, adding to the melody
and overall power so that by the
end, the listener was brought back
to earth from the intimate world
created earlier.
Once again, the Music at Penn's
Woods series has provided the
University with the opportunity to
experience some excellent musi
cal performances. Judging from
the size of Saturday night’s audi
ence, there is plenty of room for
more participation among the
area’s residents. Next Sunday’s
performance is the last in the
series and will feature virtuoso
violinist Charles Castleman. It
offers an excellent opportunity for
adding something extra to your
weekend.
Theory, Beat Rodeo and Art In The
Dark, to name a few, this has proven
tq be a mixed blessing.
“When you work with other people,
lots of times it’s fun because they’re
real excited and they have good
songs, but lots of times it’s hard
’cause you have to talk them into
things. (Some) bands come in and
they’re real conservative, and they
just think them coming in and play
ing, and then listening back to it is all
there is to it,” he said.
R.E.M. was, apparently, the band
he had in mind when describing this
scenario. Easter explained, “When
we did the Chronic Town record, a
long time ago, it was like the first
time they’d been in the studio. They
just loved the process and wanted to
make funny noises and stuff. But
between that and doing Murmur, they
had to do a track with this producer
who did everything that they hate
he made them play the song a million
times to get it perfect, he put synthe
sizers on it, and they were just furious
with that.”
“By the time we started working on
the Murmur album, they had really
become suspicious of producers.
They just saw every idea as corrupt
or stupid but really, I think every
thing we talked them into doing, I’m
glad we did. Most records can benefit
from a little tarting up in the studio.”
In the time spaces between working
on Big Plans for Everybody and
waiting for it to come out, he worked
on several record projects that will be
released this year, involving the
bands Game Theory, Waxing Poetics
(“Mike Mills” - of R.E.M. -
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“worked on that some”), Hyaa!
(“they’re really good”) and George
Hamilton V (“a country guy from
Chapel Hill, N.C.”).
His compassion for the groups he
records remains consistent. “It’s
really obnoxious to do the sort of
thing where the band comes in and
the product that comes out doesn’t
sound anything like the band they
can’t look at it and go, ‘we did this
,’ ’cause the producer has changed
everything. I think that’s a drag. I
really want to work with the band and
get sohiething they like at the end of
it.”
And for now, he’s particularly glad
to have a chance to work on his own
big plans, and isn’t bothered by the
prospect of touring until th&end of the
year.“lt’s actually a pretty comfy job
in a lot of ways there’s an incredi
ble amount of freedom and weirdness
that you don’t have in a 9 to 5 job. And
it’s a really good way to see all these
places. I sort of feel that you just
don’t get to complain about it too
much. Those guys who go on writing
those ‘pitiful road songs’ should be
marched off a cliff.”
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* IT IS NEVER TOO EARLY TO THINK ABOUT SKI SEASON *
SEASON PASSES ON SALE NOW
Tussey Mountain Ski Area is gearing up now
for its best season ever. Improved snowmaking,
more special events, and of course our continued
dedication to providing you with the finest skiing we
know how.
Plus, we just hired Sandy Chivers, from
Waterville Valley, NH, a former pro racer on the
National Women’s Ski Tour, to direct our ski
programs. The deadline is June 30th, so don’t delay!
All this adds up to an exciting ski season. We
are sure you don’t want to miss it!
aftSSJSSa
ANP IDNI6HT ONLY-A BENEFIT
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—Music at Penn's Woods —i
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Markand Thakar, Music Director
Sunday, July 6 Charles Castleman, violin
7:30 pm Schwab Auditorium
Romanian Folk Dances Bartok
Violin Concerto n 0.5 “Turkish” Mozart
Symphony no.l in C Major Beethoven
Tickets: $4, $2 Available at the Eisenhower Box Office or call 863-4415
A FREE chamber music concert featuring works by Mozart,
Prokofiev, arid Mendelssohn will be presented at 3 pm in
Eisenhower Chapel on Sunday, July 6.
June 21 - July 6 , 1986
The Pennsylvania State University, State College, Pennsylvania
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Across
1 Malayan feather palm
7 Tropical skin disease
11 Public speaker
12 Turn inside out
14 Lively Spanish dance
15 Is animated
16 Diamond lady
17 Handle
19 Basque movement
20 Sir Anthony
22 Homesteader
24 Mountain range
26 New-.comb. form
27 Split pulse
29 Tricked
33 Finishes the inside again
37 Blanch
38 Head of Benjamin’s clan
39 Kindred
41 Medieval tale
42 Civil War bullet
44 Clerical garments
46 Episode
47 Shore bird
48 Later
49 Prevents
The Daily Collegian
Monday, June 30, 1986
Gong birds.
(answers in Tuesday’s classifieds)
Down
1 Stemmed glassware
• 2 Copper alloy
3 Gavel
4 Indian
5 Hebrew precept
6 Fetters
7 Tardy
8 White yam
9 Angle
10 Sharp mountain range
13 Autocratic leader
18 100th of a yen
21 Dilemmas
23 Malay lugger
25 Chinese fabric
28 Garland
30 Sovereign’s residence
31 Click bettle
32 Freethinkers
33 Borders
34 Heather
35 Napery
36 Valuable violin
40 Own
43 Leucothea
45 Fly larva