The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current, November 12, 1998, Image 4

Below is the OCR text representation for this newspapers page. It is also available as plain text as well as XML.

    vT!
CLASS OF 2000
E - WALK
Sweatshirts. T-shirts. BBQ Tickets
MSC Hallway
November 3-20 10-3:00 p.m.
HEEEETWWl—W
We’re selling an extra week!
Be sure to get your BBQ tickets
hffp://class00.famu.edu
LOOKING FOR A FEW
DEAD ELEPHANTS
Page 4 • Thursday, November 12, 1998
AggieliP
Rooted Success
Spirit Tree blends acoustic-rock stylings
with modern rock for a unique musical sty
BY RILEY LAGRONE
The Battalion
TANKING
FRIENDS TAN
The BIGGEST, most
POWERFUL beds in town...
Featuring the JET POWER 6000
Aggieland’s only European ultra Sun Beds ..
Come Experience the Ultra-Sun Difference
& Get the “Scut Treatment
WOODSTONE SHOPPING CENTER
(Between Nutritec & Subway)
College Station, Tx 77840
(409) 680-1492
tt
We will tan your hide good
39
I t isn’t often that a band has
“second string” members who
are ready to play a gig if the usu
al musicians cannot make it. Spir
it Thee, however, is the exception.
In fact, it is exactly that kind of
flexibility that has allowed the
band to make the most of every op
portunity presented to it.
Spirit Tfee’s usual lineup consists
of Dave Baxter on lead guitars,
Randy Wasserman on drums, Rick
DeLellis on bass and Rachel
Williams on keyboards and vocals.
• The band also has backup drum
mer Mike Holleman and backup
bass player Brian Lippman to pick
up the slack when schedules collide.
The whole act is held together by
lead vocalist/guitarist and primary
songwriter Ron Piwko. Piwko, for
merly of the Texas Woodies, has
used Spirit TVee’s acoustic-turned-
electric-rock sound to score open
ing-act positions for groups as var
ied as Storyville, the Dixie Chicks
and Cowboy Mouth.
As demonstrated by Piwko’s
songwriting style and the wide
range of bands Spirit TYee has
opened for, the key to the band’s
music is versatility.
Because the intensity of the
band’s music can be adjusted de
pending on the venue and crowd,
Spirit Tee seems to be booking gigs
faster than it can play them.
Piwko said since the demise of
the Texas Woodies and the forma
tion of Spirit Tee, his music has be
gun to progress far beyond its
acoustic-rock beginnings.
“The biggest thing is to get away
from being concentrated on
acoustic rock ... and taking a song
in [its own direction],” Piwko said.
“We used to take heavy-rock songs
XJf" BRANDON B0U.0M.TiiiJ
Ron Piwko and Rachel Williams will perform with fellow Spirit Tree tel
members at The Tap tonight. They will open for the Austin bandSisteif
... or songs with Southern-rock
roots ... and tone them down to
acoustic-rock songs. Now, if a song
comes out sounding a certain way,
then that’s how we’ll do it.”
Thanks to Piwko’s newfound
musical freedom, Spirit Tee has
begun to receive an even better re
sponse from its crowds than the
Texas Woodies did. The band’s first
single, “Tall Southern Grail
recorded with Austin’s LisaTirJ
has received airplay on locale
station KTSR-FM 92.1. The bar:
currently putting the
touches on its first album, UiJ
as well. The record shouldbertj
for release after the holidays.
Spirit Tee is performingtoii|
at the Tap with Sister/.
Friday, IS
Ticket,
$2.50 ir
Box
All f
Yoii don’t have to buy pizza for everyone
on your floor. But isn’t it nice to know
that you could?
Give yourself financial flexibility. Call us for The Associates Student Visa®card. And get all this:
• 3% cash back on purchases
No annual fee
JLOOJ
COl
Supplem
something* ih
does
Credit line up to $2,500
To apply, call toll free
1-888-SEND-ONE
'See Rebate Terms and Conditions accompanying the credit card
For more information, and great discounts, visit our Web site at
www.studentcreditcard.com.