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Show AggieLife Page 6 Monday, Oct. 17, 2011 From Page 4 Logan a gets taste of Jackson up to (USU) because they really, really digit." Eldon Johnson, the primary dancer and associate artistic director of the show, said all of the dancers are actors as well. Johnson said his favorite part of the process is getting to interact with the audience. He said that is what makes the performance different every time, which makes it so much fun to perform. He said another reason it's so fun to perform is that he gets to play a variety of parts. "There's a lot of different things that we get to do and different feelings that we get to portray each night," he said. Smith said her favorite part of the show is the point duet called "Frankenstein's Bride." "The Frankenstein is hilarious," she said. "It's a fun story, and it's entertaining." "(The show is) not just geared to those people that know a lot about dancing," Johnson said. Smith said sometimes people think the show is just going to be a dance recital, but they change their minds after they've seen the performance for themselves. "Everyone that comes says, `Wow, that was actually really, really good,'" Smith said. Yeager said patrons can bring dates and feel like they're showing Play in and spray it off their cultural side while enjoying themselves at the same time. He said one of his favorite parts of the show is the fact that people who don't really know a lot about dancing can still enjoy it. "The best thing about `Thriller' is that it has every kind of dancing," she said. Along with its own performers, the Odyssey Dance Theatre has guest performers who travel with it. The group has singers who perform as well as a step group known as "The Steppin' Wolfs." Yeager said the show has gotten so popular that Odyssey Dance Theatre has two separate companies. Johnson said "Thriller" has become a big part of the Halloween culture in Utah. "I think people should definitely come out to the show to get away from their everyday life," he said. The performance is Oct. 18 in the Kent Concert Hall. Student tickets purchased in advance are $5 and tickets at the door are $8. "Those who haven't seen (the show) should definitely come and check it out to see what all the hype is about," Smith said. "It will be a fun night." STUDENTS INVOLVED IN THE INTERNATIONAL Student Council work together to spray paint chess boards on tables outside the Quadside Cafe Friday, Oct. 14. MARISSA CROOKSTONE photo - karlee.ulrich@aggiemail.usu. edu Bravo? Not quite, White Ivory SICK of seeing the same old cosumes everywhere you look? Great Pices: $49.00 or less ri Comes complete with all accessories c0cK erge. 47 North Main St. - Downtown Logan r erreca for sales & Specials Thursday October 27, 2011 10:00 a.m. - 2:00 p.m. TSC Ballroom & Lounges UtahStateUn ive rsity CAREER SERVICES Visit usu.edu/career for a complete list of graduate schools attending (435) 797-7777 careerservices@usu.edu Good day gentlemen and ladies. This week's sampling of underground music brings us to Layton, Utah. The group White Ivory hails from northern Utah. They are something that I would call pianodriven rock band. Their release "0! Bravo," was released through their own blood, sweat and tears in September. To do my part to build the Utah music scene, I decided to take a look at their album last week. After holding the classy CD jewel case made famous in the '90s, I knew that they were a band waiting to happen. The simple artwork of a elephant by a wavy river of piano keys and images of elephants and notes on the back with a link to their Facebook page truly compels one to listen to the music, or put it back down and go for a Casiokids CD. I decided to give this small-town band a chance. After hearing a bit of the album from my Aggie Radio correspondent, I decided this diamond in the rough deserved a listen to. After downloading it to my computer, I started listening and simultaneously searching the group's Facebook page. Looking through the photos, one is welcomed by the "0! Bravo" artwork and by scrolling through the profile pictures, a staged photo of the band. There I found the true face of the White Ivory, aka a troubled songwriter in a rolled up dress shirt with a sweater on top, a tough guy with a go easy attitude, a short guitarist with an "I-don't-care" scruff and half smile, with a shirt from a WWII surplus store, and a bassist with aviators wearing a T-shirt. Hopefully, one is not dissuaded by the appearance of the CD or band, as the songs are actually, surprisingly, amazingly well done. The album starts off with the piano and comes full circle with the piano — not a synthesizer, but a slightly electronicsounding grand piano. As I said, the piano hits off the album like Babe Ruth, and the vocals come in to back it up. The bass and drums come in to support, the guitar then doodles over the slurry and the first track finishes, leaving the listener intrigued but dissatisfied. The next track then is somewhat generic and by the end is forgotten, but by the third track "Frictional Fiction," the album really hits its stride. The vocals have a haunting effect as they effortlessly float over the beautiful piano while the guitar hits some great atmospheric notes. It's here the album takes a trip to the wild side as the distorted guitar and drums kick in and the piano follows. The rest of the song moves from moment to moment but it keeps the piano feel very well. "Rock the Ballroom" is one of my favorite songs on the album. It's a jazzy, bass-driven, snap-yourfingers jam that appears unexpectedly but enjoyably, as it then fades to a piano solo. After this intermission, the album goes through a few somewhat generic-feeling songs but then "Singing to No One" creeps onto the scene with some great guitarand-bass-driven lines, with a surprising little to no piano in it. The song then slips into a head-banging heavy rock and then ends with a riff from its beginning. The next song is probably the gold from the album. "Take Your Time" is a mix of jazz and the rock that is not fully exploited in earlier songs. The bubbly guitar and complementary bass and drums, the fun jazz piano riffs that appear suddenly, the enjoyable rock style dance seshes and the solos to the resounding chorus at the end each contribute to this, my favorite song on the album. Then the last and title track "0! Bravo" is a blatant summation of the album, as the main singer Marc Nielson tells us that these songs are all for some girl that may be listening. The great piano still continues as the guitars play back up and drums keep it heavy. The recording style is really cool as the piano shifts from an older sounding recording to a modern sound. Bottom line: If you want to hear a singer that sounds really similar to Ben Folds and a similar piano style to Folds, then pick up "0! Bravo," or look them up on the F-book. If you would rather hear lyrics that aren't solely about girls and actually have a bit of depth, then you could probably look up Ben Folds instead. The recording is great, the music is good at times, generic at others but over all a solid first attempt from a local band. I would give this album a solid B and a half minus. Keep going White Ivory, you have the potential. - alexander.h.van_oene@ aggiemail.usu.edu |