concerts. Hendrix was at
the height of his populari-
ty, and was taking his fans
on a precarious ride
through uncharted territo-
ry. Now, however, we know
how the ride ends, and
we've been on several rides
since then. This record,
then, is a mandatory piece
of history, a beautifully
packaged snapshot of one
of modern music's undis-
puted giants.

In today’s ultra-choreo-
graphed entertainment
world, you would never see
this sort of free-for-all by
someone at the top of their
field. Hendrix would make
time changes on the fly,
signalling to bassist Billy
Cox and drummer Buddy
Miles with a nod or a flick
of his hand. Songs had
depth and consistency, but,
as demonstrated here by
the December 31 and
January 1 versions of the
classic ‘Machine Gun/ were
allowed to evolve over the
course of a show, even over
the course of a few bars.

I've had a few friends
complain to me about the
proliferation of “fogey
rock” and the accompany-
ing stifling of new music. I
regret to admit that this
indeed is a problem; too
many people are too mired
in the past. Live at the
Fillmore East, however, is a
different animal. This is
not a one-hit wonder milk-
ing 30-year-old memories
in a box set. This is not
just some nameless dead
guy's family looking to
make a quick buck. While
it certainly promises to be

page 16 the Other Press

a nice money grab for all
involved, this double disc
set is more than just nos-
talgia. It’s rock and roll
itself.

Finger Eleven
Tip
Epic/Sony
Volume: 3.5

y"

The current crop of
soundalike boy bands
flooding the radio have lit-
tle to separate them, and
the debut album from
Finger Eleven hardly looks
to stem the tide. Ingenious
lyrics like “I can’t keep
changing just because you

   

think I should” comple-
ment perfectly bland
instrumentation ripped off
from 83 bands (who in
turn ripped their riffs off
of 62 others). Finger can’t
even claim kick-ass vocals
as an excuse for this exer-
cise.

Sony Canada is hoping
Ontario’s Finger will catch
on with the Our Lady Peace
crowd. The difference here
is talent—where OLP’s
Raine Maida has stirring,
unique vocals, Finger’s

May 1999

    

Attn: !!
Special offer!

¢ Copies—Self-service
® Colour Laser Copies

 
 

¢ Colour Laser Transparencies

* Cerlox Binding For Presentations
Typesetting, Resumes/Letters, Fax, Address Labels,
Business Cards, Rubber Stamps, Laminating

    
   
     
   
    
   

06 cents
50% off!
40% off!
50% off!

 

Scott Anderson constantly
leaves a listener trying to
determine who his
favourite singer is. Hey, is
that a little Eddie Vedder in
there? Wait for this Raine
impression...right here!
Oooh, and be sure to catch
this Kurt Cobain riff! This
pretty much sums up all
parts of the band.

Of course, some of our
best artists are ripoff
artists. But it’s only
worthwhile when they
twist it into something of
their own. Finger Eleven
is highly derivative,
without a shred of origi-
nality. The sad thing is,
the radio landscape cur-
rently supports acts like
this, instead of focusing
on the inventive/ Look
for them to sell oodles..of
records.

Arcadia
So Red The Rose
EMI Canada
Volume: 6
Cheese Factor: 8
ust when you thought
J we were coming up on
the millennium, it’s
suddenly 1985. Duran
Duran is at the height of

their popularity, when they
shock the teeny bopper

world by momentarily
splitting up to pursue solo
projects. While a couple of
the Durans team up with
Robert Palmer to release a
slickly produced, critically
lauded album under the
moniker Power Station, the
heartthrob Durans (Simon
Le Bon, Nick Rhodes and
Roger Taylor) get slammed
for releasing So Red the
Rose and calling themselves
Arcadia.

The record actually isn’t
bad, as far as vacuous pop
goes, and a few tracks
stand the test of time to
epitomize the superficial
‘80s. ‘Election Day’ was the
single that everyone heard,
everyone knew, and every-
one requested, but no one
knew (or cared) what the
words were (or meant). A
couple of neat gems, such
as ‘The Promise’ featuring
Sting and Herbie Hancock,
make this a guilty pleasure
worth pulling out now and
again.