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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Nov. 10, 1988)
SM&jA&U Reviews "Man In Motion" Night Ranger MCA Records ★★V2 Night Ranger approaches rock ’n’ roll by grafting searing, metallic guitar solos onto a melodic, middle-of-the-road pop tune. On “Man In Motion,” the band continues that sound. “Man In Motion” is Night Ranger’s first album in three years, the last one being “Seven Wishes, ” which scored the band three hit singles, including the ballad “Sentimental Street. ” With the loss of keyboardist Alan Fitzgerald, and the help of producer Keith Olsen, who produced recent efforts by Whitesnake, the new album has a harder edge that emphasizes the twin guitars of Brad Gillis and Jeff Watson to make “Man In Motion” similar to Night Ranger’s debut album, “Dawn Patrol. ” “Love Shot Me Down” and “Right On You, ” two of the album’s heavier tracks, feature Gillis and Watson spewing out screaming guitar solos. However, their solos tend to sound the same from one song to the other. Both Gillis and Watson have good technical chops, they just don’t do anything different with any of the songs. As with so much of today’s pop and rock music, “Man In Motion” is not an album of much substance. Most of the songs deal with good love, bad love and broken hearts, all staple subjects for much commercial rock music. For example, on “Halfway to the Sun, ” bassist/vocalist Jack Blades sings of leaving the girl “with the overdone lips and that million dollar smile,” while telling her to use them on somebody else. But, love this stuff or hate it, some of Night Ranger’s songs do have catchy hooks to them. “Don’t Start Thinking” is one of these. However, if top-40 radio gets its paws on this one, it is sure to be quickly worn out from overplay. Although “Man In Motion” does not contain a solid ballad along the lines of the band’s earlier hit “Sister Christian,” Night Ranger fans are sure to Play satirizes morals By Chuck Lovcjoy The Aggie Players will open their 1988-89 season with a production of Gilbert & Sullivan’s operetta, “The Pirates of Penzance” tomorrow night at 8 in Rudder Theater. “The Pirates of Penzance” will be the group’s first production since “A Question of Identity, ” a story of political intrigue originally scheduled to open the season, was cancelled by its playwright. The musical, a satire of Victorian Age morality, centers around the story of Frederic, an orphan who is apprenticed to a bumbling band of pirates who are orphans themselves. By a twist of fate, Frederic meets Mabel, and they fall in love, despite hilarious efforts to prevent it by the local police force and Mabel’s father, General Stanley. Gilbert and Sullivan composed the operetta in 1879. Since its first production on Broadway, it has become one of the most beloved musicals of all time. The Aggie Players’ production promises to be somewhat different, as theirs boasts a fresh orchestration by August Wenck, a music professor for 12 years and son of A&M theater professor Robert Wenck. Using the original score, August Wenck arranged the operetta’s music for the seven-piece orchestra to be used in the A&M production. The show’s songs, including “I Am the Very Model of a Modem Major General” and the choms, which served as the basis for the familiar “Hail, Hail the Gang’s All Here,” will not suffer from the smaller orchestration. The musical’s lead roles, Frederic and Mabel, are to be played by senior Theater Arts major Kris Longwell and part-time student Deborah Lard. Lard, who also works with MSC OPAS, said she is especially looking forward to the performance, which will be her first in an A&M musical. “I love music, ” Lard said. “I had my first musical role in the sixth grade, and since then I can’t seem to get enough of the stage.” She has held the leading roles in about twelve musicals produced in both high school and in community theaters in Conroe and the Woodlands. Her show credits include “My Fair Lady,” “Brigadoon” and “Showboat. ” Also, she is a member of the Century Singers here at A&M. Lard received a bachelor’s degree in music education from Sam Houston State University. She is currently seeking a master’s degree at A&M, although she has not decided in which subject she will pursue the degree. A similar love for the stage is held by junior Theater Arts major Tom Haygood, stage manager and assistant music director for “The Pirates of Penzance. ” But Haygood’s passion for the theater lies behind the stage rather than on it. “It is a very hands-on type of experience, ” he said. “I have learned things I could never have discovered in the classroom. ” Training such as this is crucial to students like Haygood, who plans to pursue a career as a stage manager following graduation. “I have found my niche in the theater. I plan to do this for the rest of my life, ” he said. Performance dates for the musical are Nov. 11,12,17, 18 and 19. Tickets are $5 for students and $7.50 for the general public and are available at the MSC Box Office. enjoy this new album, and it’s sure to be another respectable hit for this California Bay area group. The only real problem with albums like this is that they lack any real idiosyncracies. Night Ranger’s mixing of hard rock and mellow pop is nothing new. Another Bay area band, Journey, has been doing it for years. Review by Shane Hall 'Ike JdaAi&i Getdesi &f Audi*,, 9*tc. “Qa/utVf Ioa. tfou” Because you W Special! • Abortion Service • Nitrous Oxide Available • Free Pregnancy Testing • Confidential Counseling • OB-Gyn Physician • Non Profit S.H.€. Center • Pap Smears • V.D. Testing • Birth Control • Breast €xams 24 Hour Emergency Call Service Total Reproductive Health Care Center Austin (512) 459-3119 for Women of All Ages 26th & Red River Dedicated to Right of Free Choice Suite 13 Medical Arts Square Toll Free (800) 999-3110 K A N M 9 9.9 FM CABLE A- v ' WEEKEND BASH TONIGHT @10 PM: KANM BENEFIT VW NO I.D & NEEDLE'S EYE @ BRAZOS LANDING 3.00 COVER FRI-9 AM-MON12 AM the BIG, BIG BIG RECORD GIVEAWAY #3 AND BLOCK PARTY WEEKEND 845-5923 LISTEN TO WIN! Thursday, Nov. 10,1988/At Ease/Page 5