February 26, 1990 Torchand Twang by Imtiaz Popat k.d. Lang is on her way back to Vancouver, with the Reclines, to ~ entertain her fans next month. k.d. and the Reclines are on their Absolute Torch and Twang Tour. Their music appeals to more than just country music lovers. They will be gracing the Orpheum on 26th and 27th March. Coming along to to open for them will be Ranch Romance-from Seattle. Kathy Dawn Lang was born and raised in a Alberta farming community. She learned piano and guitar at an early age and began to write her own music and perform- ing at local events in her early teens. In the early 80’s, she formed the Reclines and cut her first record, A Truely Western Ex- perience, in 1984. Patsy Cline, her mentor and inspiration, came out of retirement along with Kitty Wells to help k.d. record her Shadowland album. K.d. has won many awards in- cluding best female vocalist,best Country female vocalist, the Juno, the CASBY, the Rolling Stone’s critics pick and she won a Grammy for her duet, Crying with the late Roy Orbison in 1988. In 1988, k.d. lent her music to political causes. She was the Canadian representative for the Amnesty International Tour where she performed with Sting, Bruce Springsteen and Tracy Chapmam. She also performed at a concert against Free Trade at the Orpheum. Thats where I last saw her on stage. Her presents filled the stage with her rendition of Roy Orbison’s Crying. It was her very moving way of giving tribute to Orbison who had died earlier that year. Lang its seems really likes visiting Vancouver. She was seen enjoying herself at the Vancouver Music Folk Festival last summer. Now she is comming back, per- forming this time, on the Orpheum stage with the Reclines. Her fans, including me, can’t wait. Too by Nick Waldron The night started off with a frozen bottle of beer at the Com- modore Ball Room. The second the waitress left the table the beer foamed all over the place. You don’t think it could get worse do you. Just as I looked up from the horrible mess, a Fat Boys video came on the big screen in front of the stage. I nearly joined the beer. A little while later a guy came out and introduced himself as a, "poring folk singer." He then proceeded to hop down onto the floor and walk around amoungst the crowd. He was quite a hit. His Late songs were incredible. The one I enjoyed the most was his song about where he was and what he was doing during Live Aid. He made fun of Madonna, Depeche Mode and just about every rich, snotty performer. His name is John Wesly Harding and he has an album out called, "Here Comes the Groove." If you would like to hear someone who sounds like Billy Bragg with a comic edge; this guy’s for you. The Ocean Blue and The Mightly Lemon Drops played as well. I couldn’t stay to see them because they were on too late. _ Folkster Breaks All The Rules Phranc I Enjoy Being a Girl Island Records Phranc’s new album flies in the face of convention. In an in- dustry that promotes conformity in both image and radio format, she very definitely stands out. A hip flat-topped folksinger from San Francisco, even image-wise she was destined to fail from the very beginning (according to industry pinheads). And when she started singing those lyrics, everyone knew she probably wasn’t going to be the biggest thing since Tracy Chapman. But whose fault is that? Cer- tainly Phranc (pronounced "frank") had nothing to do with it. Her album is brilliant. Maybe if Island could have put a bit more money into promotion, you’d be hearing Phranc on the radio. A lot. The album itself is full of great melodiies and biting, feciciuos, and’ truthful lyrics written from her feminist lesbian standpoint. Some songs are angry, like "Bloodbath" (about South Africa), or "Take Off Your Swastika", which exposes that dangerous fashion trend: "if it was you in those ovens/ you wouldn’t think it was so god- damned cool." But just as many are funny, with "Martina" and "Folksinger" standing out in particular, or bit- tersweet. "Double Decker Bed" tells the story of Phranc learning to love, and "Miriam and Esther" remembers her grandmothers in a beautiful tribute. And in the title track, she takes that song (written by Rogers and Hammerstein, the men who brought you "The Sound. of Music" and similar trash) and exposes the blatant sexism of the writers and their times, but in a very humourous way. Every once and awhile a tape comes to you that you can’t get out of your head. The songs keep com- ing back to you at the strangest times, spicing your life with their melodies. And no matter how many times you play the tape, you never get bored with it. I Know that this is one of those tapes. It will be one of my favourites for a long time to come. Tim Crumley Debut Album 11 "Thought Provoking" Shawn Colvin steady on CBS Records Shawn Colvin’s debut folk- rock album, steady on, is thought- provoking listening. The self-search it seems to represent is arranged like a novel in two parts. Side one explores relation- ships and the illusions associated with them. Side two involves the familiar "going home” story as the search continues. Both hometown and big city are found to be oppressive and lonely. The woman in the songs eventually trancends all this by creating. The message of meaning in life through this kind of inde- pendence is no breakthrough, but it is real. The music is less inspiring than the poetry. The speechlike simplicity of the vocal line, to be fair, generally fills the purpose of underlining the text. However, at times its patteringness itself gets in the way of listener appreciation. At those times, the rhyhmic in- strumental interludes come as a relief. The sound is not bad, especial- ly for a debut. The band is mostly acoustic. Although her voice tends towards the nasal, it grows hard on the faster songs. Her clear, asser- tive phrasing, however, kept me lis- tening. The overall sound is fairly sparse yet coloristically contrast- ing, as much Celtic as mainstream- sounding. This album will appeal to folk fans, but is unlikely to follow Vega’s in turning over the Top Forty crowd. But it would be an idea to listen to it around March 8 if you have ever looked to the world for something you had all along. Michelle Lavallee Hasty Market ‘Convenience with a difference” 74 8th Street New Westminister B.C. 525-8850 (Across the Street from Douglas College) Special of the Week Sandwich(Beef or Ham) with either Coffee, 250m! of white or Chocolate milk. $1.99 (With this Coupon .Offer good through Sunday, March 4/90)