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Show DEC03 R4 - THE BEAT - RED p-- j LI if m. - 1998 ; l 77 f""Z R&Breviews by SHANE MCCAMMON New Radicals Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too MCA Records ) (out of four) Alexander, lead man and sole regular member of The New Radicals, is a hypo critical egomaniac and the most precocious newcomer to hit the charts since LeAnn Rimes. He criticizes numerous bands in the hit single "You Get What You Give" for selling out, singing "Fashion mag shoots with Beck, Hanson, Courtney Love and Marilyn Manson You're all fakes, run to your mansions Come around and we'll kick your asses." Yet, for someone who is so disdainful of images, it's ironic Alexander's face is plastered all over his CD cover and the liner notes, constantly reminding you he is one hot heartthrob and a Seventeen cover shoot waiting to happen. Lost in the buzz that Alexander will be the next sure hit for the female demographic is that his Maybe You 've Been Brainwashed Too is a generally impressive debut that doesn't rely on the generic pop melodies that have made newer acts such as Matchbox 20 and Third Eye Blind rich. Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too isn't a great album, but hell, do you think the record executives at MCA really care? They just need one decent song so they can cut a video in order to compete with The Backstreet Boys. Alexander grew up in Detroit, and the R&B that put the Motor City on the musical map has seeped into Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too. The album, which was produced by none other than Gregg of jazzy piano hooks and fluttering vocal Alexander, is chock-ful- l arrangements. There are also plenty of distorted electric guitars and set. meaty drums to placate the s However, the main problem with Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too (and The New Radicals for that matter) is that Alexander's vocals come off like Billy Corgan trying to sing a Boyz II Men tune. Tracks like "I Hope I Didn't Just Give Away the Ending" and "Jehovah Made This Whole Joint for You" are case studies in auditory patience, and most of the rest are fairly forgettable forays into territory that has already been explored and exploited by Lenny Kravitz and Jamiro-quaREGG I I by EMILY DAVIS wrong. Opening with "A Question of Time" from its 1986 album Black Celebration, the band's confidence was quickly apparent. Lead singer Gahan strutted the stage with a sexy swagger, reveling in the audience's enthusiasm for the show, while keyboardist Andrew Fletcher bounced along to the beat, clapping and encouraging the crowd to sing along. "World In My Eyes" and "Policy of Truth" followed strongly, warming the crowd up. Gahan worked the crowd shamelessly. Constantly teasing and flirting. he whipped and gentlemen, Dave has a message for you and hear. He would like you to know that Depeche Mode is still alive and stronger than they have been in years. While many of you are probably shaking your heads in disagreement, muttering to yourselves, "Depedhe Mode, who cares about an aging British synth-poband?" the sold-ou- t crowd, who chanted along with every song and screamed with every move that Gahan made, proved you iADIES p around the stage endlessly, pausing only to encourage the crowd to sing louder. Halfway through the show, Martin Gore, the band's songwriter, stepped forward to sing "A Ouestion of Lust" and "Home." While he seemed uncomfortable and unsure at WW first, his voice grew steadily stronger and more assured. Showing that the band has learned how to incorporate guitars into its sound, Gore worked solos into "In Your by BRIAN WATTS is a key word. As a gen- eral rule, boxers not the underwear, but the peo ple are not known for their style. Attitude, maybe, but to be truly stylish, a successful integration between attitude and appearance must be accomplished. Chris Isaak, a fairly successful boxer in his college days, has accomplished the integration flawlessly. Not many people can own harmonicas with their name inlaid and not seem egotistic. Isaak has moved from the boxing world to the music world, doing a little acting on the side. You might remember Isaak from his roles in "The Silence of the Lambs" and "That Thing You Do." Despite his successful forays into other arenas, it is Isaak's music that first thrust him into the see ISAAK, and "Barrel of a Gun." 12-- 15 Though he is definitely not ready to join Radiohead, his solos added a variation to the songs that is missing on the albums. The concert was at its strongest during "Enjoy the Silence" and "Personal Jesus." Depeche Mode has always bordered on being pretentious with their playful sexuality and attempts at gothic sensibility, but during these songs the balance worked and they were downright sexy. During "Stripped," Gahan made one group of concert-goerexperience complete when he reached his microphone out to let them sing the chorus for everyone! Also, it is sure that more than a few couples had a moment when Martin opened the encore set with the dance staple "Somebody." Though Gore has repeatedly emphasized that it is not a greatest-hits album, the band recently released a collection of its singles released between 1986 to 1998. Of the 19 singles they released between those years, they played 17 at the show. So, while there were no surprises in their choice of songs, it was good to see the band approach their alt-roc- s' high-scho- best-know- ol n material with new eyes. Closing with "Just Can't Get Enough," Depeche Mode played surprisingly strong show on Tuesday night. While not as innocent as their syncopated fluff of the '80s, Depeche Mode showed that it still knows how to put together a tight, enjoyable show. s k i. ssThe semigloss highlights of the album include "You Get What You has already been overplayed to death by nearly every radio station with a license, and "I Don't Wanna Die Anymore," an emotional and surprisingly sincere tune about trying to Give," which piano-drive- n kick drug addiction. But most of the tracks comprising Maybe are just slightly tweaked rehashes of old material. "Gotta Stay High "yet another song about Alexander's favorite topic, sounds fine (meaning Alexander's voice doesn't grate your cerebrum) but is just too close to sounding like Journey to make it memorable. Ditto for the title track, which sounds like Frank Black and the rest of The Pixies are making a guest appearance, which would not necessarily be a bad thing but doesn't say much for The New Radicals. r Maybe You've Been Brainwashed Too never lives up to the ideals Alexander sings about, such as not giving up, because after the first listen, you are ready to give it up and move on to something a little more inspiring and originaL Maybe does wear on you after awhile, and you do forget about the myriad imperfections that arise upon the first listen, but it might be asking too much for such a fickle listening audience to give it repeated listens. But what all Maybe really boils down to is that if the executives at MCA can't get you to listen, they'll make damn sure you see Alexander's face when you're in line at the supermarket or flipping through the channels. ivory-towe- Cher Believe TYLE . Room" page Rl 1 f1 SPEAK OF THE DEVIL Cin$ Isaak to play Kingsbury Hall Warner Music UK (out of four) HER has a new dance CD, and no, she didn t hit her heaa while skiing. Believe is a sur prising effort by the soisK object of Beavis and Butthead's affection to reclaim some musical territory lost to newcomers and to get out of the tabloids and back into the thick of the music world. The airwaves have been filled the past few years with female pop diva wannabes, such as Natalie Imbruglia, Ann Goon and Everything But The Girl, singing over generic dance beats that sound as if they originated from a Casio keyboard. These acts have had a smattering of success, cashing in on the whole thing. With Believe, Cher gives the masses the real deal. Believe is the perfect remedy if you have the jones for good dance music, the kind that made Madonna the one and only material girl and Paula Abdul the most famous Laker girl ever. There are a few new twists on the same old beats to bring it up to date, but not enough to make Believe worth listening to solely for the music. Don't expect groundbreaking The program- I i98os-reviv- al techno-wizardr- HtDrovio |