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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 16, 1993)
iberlG, ?nts ^THEBAmuon ie country he world. >ups " she said, ants." roups limit epares stu- ; decreased :o 56 to en- know each idents tend out. "We uant to end i social re- te relation- lege years, is," Math- ING ICE wiv V CE ogram isent a given II learn ;e and 993 [427 editor ditor ts editor ntlik, Carrie blay and \oe Leih in Scroggs, Sa and ng semesters periods), at /I University, Division of j McDonald ertising, cad day througn To charge Aggielife Thursday, September 16,1993 The Battalion Page 3 Texas’ growing crop of musicians V; v House of Usher By Margaret Claughton By*. The Battalion "A slinky groove-oriented freak fest of funk cheese." That's how Britt Tucker, lead singer of the Texas funk band House of Usher, describes the band's music. Indeed House of Usher does seem to have a cer tain Funk appeal, at least according to the average 800 people who invade Charlie's Under the Wa- tertower every weekend to see them perform. "We get a great re sponse when they play," said Charlie Piper, owner of Charlie's Under the Watertower. "They have a great sound and good style. They really play the crowd well." House of Usher impressed Piper so much with their perfor mance at a KANM benefit, that he made them the house band for Charlie's. Kevin Bomar, owner and pro ducer of Air Play recording studio was equally impressed. "I've heard it all, so it takes a lot to impress me," Bomar said. "I had a good feeling about House of Usher from the beginning. They have a cleaner sound than the Chili Peppers but with the same funk appeal." Bomar recently made a deal with House of Usher to record Art work by Angel Kan their first CD. With his help, the band is print ing their songs through Texas Plat inum Records. Mick Southerland, the band's bass player, said, "The album will have all of our previously unre leased material on it. It's second generation funk with a message." Many of the band's songs make a point or emphasize an issue the members feel strongly about. "Some of our songs are like public service an nouncements," said Ty Southerland, Mick's broth er and guitar and vocals for House of Usher. The song "Think" ad dresses the band's concern for environmental matters, and the lyrics of the song "Benediction" speak of the immorality of televan gelists. In addition to recording a new CD, Coors Light has agreed to do extensive promotion for the band. House of Usher, started by Mick, officially came together in May of 1992. Most of the members knew each other prior to playing together. Rich, Ben and Britt are former Texas A&M students. "I played with Rich Bade (key boardist) in another band," Mick said. "And I used to lift weights with Britt." "Mick called me at Sam Hous ton and asked me to play with him and Rich one weekend. It just Kyle Bumett/THL Ba ttalion House of Usher (Ty Southerland, left; Rich Bade, back; Britt Tucker, Ben Kent and Mick Southerland, right) perform at Charlie's Under The Watertower every weekend. The band has recently begun recording a new CD and have agreed to be sponsored by Coors Light. clicked. I couldn't believe how good we sounded," Ty said. Ben Kent, drummer, joined the band in August of 1992 after the original drummer, Scott, left. House of Usher recorded their first album, "Bovine Watering Whole," in August of 1992 after be ing together only a few months. "We popped out a tape just af ter everything came together," Ty said The songs on "Bovine Watering Whole" are somewhat assorted. "Some are political and some are about sex," Tucker said. "A few are deep, but most of them are light-hearted." "Their music has a fun genuine sound," Bomar said. "I want to do justice to their music to make it competitive. I don't want the recording to sound over-done." As far as the recording goes, the band doesn't seem to be too un nerved. "We're shy and we are taking it slow," said Kent, "but it's not too much of a big deal anymore." "Listening to the finished prod uct is exciting," Bade said. "I think this is our best yet." Doug Supernaw Ian Moore Supernaw By Lesa Ann King The Battalion Many aspiring country music songwriters and per formers travel to Nashville, Tenn., in hopes of landing their first recording con tract. But, rising coun try music star and Bryan native Doug Supernaw found another way to make a name for himself in country music - by traveling and performing in his home state of Texas. Supernaw's re cent success with the num ber one country hit, "Reno," has helped him keep the country honky-tonks packed all across the state. Supernaw, like his mu sic, is down to earth and hard country to the core. In 1987, he moved to Nashville looking for his singing break while he worked aS a staff song writer at a local publishing company. His passion, however, was performing on stage; and in Nashville, places to play were hard to find. "You can't set yourself apart because there's no place to play in Nashville," Su pernaw said. "By the time you get a band together and travel 40 miles out of town to play, you're losing mon ey." Frustrated with Nashville, he came back to Texas and put to gether a band called Texas Steel that quickly became known as one of the hottest country dance bands around. Supernaw's knack for high-voltage entertain ment earned him an avid following. Supernaw said gaining See Supernaw/ Page 5 By Joe Leih The Battalion Amazingly enough, Austin gui tar slinger Ian Moore has no prob lem ripping through solos, belting out tunes or creat ing a mix of ardent blues, rock and soul. But alas, he still falls far from per fection. The impossible task of ducking the population's preconceived ideas just isn't in Moore's mastery. "I'm not saying I'm the most 'out there' cat in the world," Moore said. "It's just hard for people to classify things as new and unusual." For example, Moore refutes the notion that he's a traditional blues player. "I can't make a claim to be a delta blues man," Moore said. "I am a human being. I have my own blues. . . and talk about what I know and who I am." Nonetheless, many people claim that they do in fact already know who Moore is - the next Ste vie Ray Vaughan, the late, great Austin blues master. "(The comparison) is kind of a mixed blessing," Moore said. "It's a positive thing when people say that. I loved Stevie,. . . but I am a lot different musically." In fact, Moore be- lieves he is much more than a six-string devo tee. "My guitar playing. . . that tends to be a domi nant factor," Moore said, "but I am a singer/song writer as well. I try to bal ance all three of them." And Moore does bal ance all three talents, but help from bandmates Michael Villegas (drums), Chris White (bass) and Bukka Allen (keyboard). All four came together in Austin after Moore returned from playing with Los Angeles pop star Tim Carr in 1989. "It was not music," Moore said. "It was all about image and pos turing. I decided that I was never going to be that kind of artist." So, Moore gathered the band together and eventually recorded the album, "Ian Moore," that was with Moore released this July. Matt Howard, publicity assis tant of Capricorn records said the new release has done remarkably well. "The album is ready to pop na tionally," Howard said. "His cur rent single 'How Does It Feel' is See Moore/ Page 5 : ' • L- — “ Music Reviews Mellencamp mellows out... Human Wheels’ reveals soft side to the small town man Sweet nostalgia. Tailor’s (tasks revived By Jacqueline Ayotte The Battalion "Human Wheels" John Mellencamp Rock Mercury Records Album courtesy of CD Warehouse Remember the days when John Mel lencamp was John Cougar Mellen camp? He could yell out words like "car," "truck," or "jack and Diane" and make a song out of them. You guessed he was incredibly hoarse from all that yelling, but his mu sic still had a cool beat to it that was distinctively all his own? Well, Mellencamp's new album "Hu man Wheels" has a much softer touch, a clearer voice arid a refreshingly new style. The title song "Human Wheels" is the most impressive song on the album. It begins with the slow glide of an elec tric guitar and a synthesized voice that has a classic electricity to it. Mellen- camp's voice sings softly afterwards, adding depth to this lightly textured mix of old and new sounds. "When Jesus Left Birmingham" is a very simple song lyric-wise. Yet, the words flow along perfectly with Mel- lencamp's gentle sing-talk, a sharp beat of the drums and the beautifully pow erful voice of background singer Lisa Germane. "Sweet Evening Breeze" and "To The River" are two songs both light on the guitar and smooth on his voice. They definitely add to Mellencamp's fresh new style. The only problem with the new style in "Human Wheels" is that practically every song has the same pattern. Near ly every song starts out slow, with hardly any instruments other than the slight touch of a guitar or a few beats of a drum. It then begins to grow into a louder, faster song, followed by Mellen camp's voice getting stronger the faster the beat becomes. This pattern does drag on, but at least it's a slight change from the sound Mellencamp used to be famous for. It's nice to see how a talented musician's transformation in music style can keep that fire burning. By Jacqueline Ayotte The Battalion "Selections From James Taylor - Live" James Taylor Classic Rock Columbia Records That delicate sound of sweet nostalgia. . . oh yes, James Taylor is back. "Selections From James Tay lor - Live" is like a visit from a long lost soul mate. Only this time, Taylor's not just reliving past memories. He's adding on a whole new dimension to fif- f Sv 1 teen of his timeless classics by recording them live. The deep meaning within Tay lor's lyrics have always unlocked bittersweet tears, grins and fears you never knew existed. But hearing them on his new live album triples this tantalizing effect. "Fire and Rain" still makes you cry, "Mexico" still makes you want to party and "You've Got a Friend" still inspires; but now they all sound crisper, clearer and truer than ever. Each song feels good, with Taylor's soft, familiar voice sending messages of pure emo tion to your heart. If you've always loved Tay lor's music, adding "Selections From James Taylor - Live" to your collection is a definite must. And for those of you who aren't familiar with him, listen ing to this album is an experi ence you'll never forget. James Taylor is the king of soft classic rock/and unless you're heartless, this album will affect you forever. V / z/Mi III 111 J? m ter? wrsras IBPW3
