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NOVEMBER/DECEMBER 1990 ■ Life and Art
U. THE NATIONAL COLLEGE NEWSPAPER 11
Soundbites
going ‘Wild’
flatmates were into the demos I was making and one of
them said, “I want you to be in her shoes one of these
days.” The next thing we know is that I’m going for an
audition with Vince Clarke.
U.: It’s been said that you're displeased with the way
in which Sire Records has handled your remixes in the
past.
AB: Well, they don’t seem to be very imaginative. They
kind of have their stable of remixers that they’ve used for
the past five years, and they always go to the same people.
U.: Have the relations with Sire gotten any better with
"Wild?"
AB: There are still a few things that need ironing out
They focused this time on “Blue Savannah” and promot
ing it. They purposely didn’t promote “Drama,” and now
“Blue Savannah” isn't doing as well as they expected it
would do. It seems as though everything is so formula
and worked out beforehand, but I don’t think you can
do that really.
U. -.During the video for “A Little Respect, "Vince spray
paints over a Depeche Mode logo. Is there a rivalry
between the two groups that we don’t know about ?
AB: (reluctantly) There is. I mean, there’s bound to
be, isn’t there? Being the two money spinners on Mute
(both bands are on the U.K label), there’s bound to be
competition. But we’re kind of opposite and I’m sure
Depeche Mode thinks our music is far too commercial
and all that. They’re trying to be serious synth-rock
artists. I’ve been to see them live, and I do look forward
to hearing new things when they come out. I like Martin
(Gore) and I like Andy (Fletcher), although I’ve only met
them a few times. But when they’re together as a group,
they really seem to live out that rock legend thing. I
could imagine them smashing up a hotel room or some
thing like that (laughs).
U. \ That’s something you guys would never do?
AB: Well, not unless ... I mean, I’d do that only if I
lost my temper and I felt I had to do that, you know. I
wouldn’t do that just for show.
Lou Reed and John Cale
Songs for Drella
Andy Warhol surrounded himself with artists he
molded and influenced—musicians like the defunct
Velvet Undergound. The two core members of the
Velvets, Lou Reed and John Cale, came together last
year for the first time in 20 years to collaborate on
a tribute to their late mentor. Songs For Drella cov
ers Warhol’s career from its beginning
(“Smalltown”) to his death (“Hello, It’s Me"). Cale
and Reed step back to reveal their own thoughts of
Warhol, sometimes their friend and sometimes their
enemy. Velvet influence is heard throughout the
work with Cale's viola and classically influenced
piano set-up in copjuction with Reed’s rock-and-
rolling guitar. And their use of Warhol’s nickname
“Drella” — a cross between Dracula and Cinderella
—exemplifies the diversity ofthe album, not to men
tion the duo’s genuine conviction behind this record:
Star
Continued from page 8
Raised in the farming state's town of Fremont, there
were no actors in her family. Her father was a meat
inspector. Her mother was a nurse. She became inter
ested in acting in high school as a way to escape boredom.
“You got involved in every possible extracurricular
activity you possibly could,” she remembered. Her deci
sion to go into acting shocked her family, because, as she
said, “Nobody from my hometown does that sort of thing.
“They either go into farming or something ‘normal’
— teaching or nursing. Nobody goes into flaky things ’
like acting.”
But whether Helgenberger is “normal” or not, her
family and the town of Fremont are anything but skep
tical of her now.
“My mother is practically president of my fan club,” I
Everyone who knew Warhol was aware of how
much he hated the nickname. ■ Kimber VanRy, The
Spectrum, State U. of New York, Buffalo
Prince
Graffiti Bridge
Graffiti Bridge is the sequel to Purple Rain. The
unique aspect of this new masterpiece is that it has
songs showcasing artists other than Prince, such as
Mavis Staples, The Time, George Clinton, and the
Quincy Jones Discovery and Tfevin Campbell. But
all the songs—of course — are either written, pro
duced or instrumentaliy performed by Prince. What
makes Bridge work is that it shows off Prince’s
acclaimed funk sound. From the bluesy “The
Question of You* to the old-style funkadelidsm of
“We Can Funk’ and “Love Machine,” Prince mixes
masses, tones and styles perfectly. ■ Tim Little, The
Daily Tar Heel, U. of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
she said with a wide smile. Helgenberger attended
Northwestern U. and won several acting roles, culmi
nating in a performance of “The Taming of the Shrew.”
Little did she know that a casting person was seated
in the audience and that she would be noticed. Nor did
she know that she would soon find herself playing the
part of Siobhan Ryan for three and a half years on
“Ryan’s Hope.”
About soap operas, she said, “They are very grueling.”
“It’s a new script everyday. The hours aren't as bad
as they are with ‘China Beach,’ where we film mostly
at night. But I have to be honest. At least to me, (work
ing on a daytime soap opera) is not gratifying at all.
“It’s probably one of the most boring things you can
get involved with,” she said.
But the days of soaps are a quickly fading memory
for this small-town girl turned star whose career
looks to be anything but boring.
■ Rob Owen, The Daily Orange, Syracuse U.
Was it live?
MEEMOREX