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PAGE 5 WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 31, 2007 Joan Jett returns to spotlight with last year's "Sinner" By Bobby Moore Staff Writer rmoore 7 @my. westga .edit Joan Jett is one of the few originals in the music industry. Thanks to her involvement in all girl band The Runaways, she predates all of the other iconic women in the alternative music world. Before Ari Up, Exene Cervenka, Pennie Houston, Nina Hagen and Kathleen Hanna, The Runaways were breaking down barriers. More similar to Suzi Quatro than The Slits, the band had a huge following in Japan and is best known for the song “Cherry Bomb”. Jett had a better post- Runaways career than any of her bandmates (including Lita Ford) thanks to her band The Blackhearts. Wine/' I With original hits like “Bad Reputation” and “1 Love Rock and Roll”, Jett gained a following in the 1980’s that is still with her today. Thanks to her participation in last summer’s Warped Tour, where she reportedly stole the show from carbon copy pop bands on a nightly basis, Jett has a lot of young fans in addition to the loyal followers she IT'S A WHOLE NEW WORLD j|r* Visit the Second Life Library http://infoisland.org ft Are You in the Game? | / w Z i l wJr ( wr>v ' OVf < ;cr i < r i fcbAt' \ I 4 \ s ! .\' .., -'..A -O/ P"- v '■ *yJ aIYS j , : * -<f* - !*■ V' f 1 ;, w? ■-•, 'J v O *v>? ■ v wt * r $ ** v ' *h r ’ n/V\| "• I 'v'vUu 7 <)"" * 1 Li.,_ Li l \ [ j rv; f t __ well, i iike r*rk CcWs. ?U.n-iC ww • Yo v sAovWt bt Jep'vssed \ | I'/*scw3oi/t Belies /v '* My. ci.d l /w '®r Uey , 2 r k >/v, Y. < b<£<o*vJ, Ike Worker V 3 U Y • /jfever treats / '/y ,„ ~ / s ‘ / A/cver I.YW to V ' p.\ / i -y w '■• v 1 ' f* * , '<*s: w&*r£:l ?*.)(,■ >, < S&y , ! v V,? **. &w yifr M *y’ '*/ -Vv 7r' i , ;jy- V-f.. ',M 12;y ( ftp, tk<7 ?rf W.gr) fw 0/ yo. b r [ c „; £ ft gained during her heyday. “Sinner”, which came out last year, fully signaled Jett’s return to the spotlight. It begins with a tune called “Riddles” that is about how politicians seem to speak their own language. There’s no riddle about Jett’s political standing at the end of the song, as you can hear a rather confused sounding George W. Bush speaking as the song begins to fade. It is followed by “A.C.D.C.”, which was originally done by The Sweet, a criminally underrated glam band that is best known for the song “Ballroom Blitz.” The song is one of the highlights of Jett’s cover version saturated live set. “Five” starts out sounding a little more experimental than the songs it follows but it turns out to sound pretty poppy once the lyrics kick in. It’s almost like The Go-Go’s with an attitude. It is also the first of several songs on this album that Hanna, the lead singer of Le Tigre and a world-renown feminist, co-wrote. The guitar-driven “Naked” was great when I heard it live at The Roxy in November, but it lacks any bite on the album. “Everyone Knows” doesn’t really do a lot for me either, but it is the last sub-par song on the album. The album finally picks up with “Change the World”. Nothing beats a catchy song that is both loud and fast, and this three minute long scorcher has all of those bases covered. It is followed by “Androgynous”, which is slow enough to be a folk tune. “Fetish” is a hard rock song with Adam Ant lyrics. Coming from me, the second part of that description is a huge complement. The difference is that Adam made light of fetishes and this song sounds like it is serious. Hanna co-wrote “Watersign”, and it is a ballad. So far, I’ve described a punk song, something that resembled a folk tune, hard rock and a ballad. Even if it wasn’t one of last year’s best albums, “Sinner” was at least one of the most diverse. Following two more Hanna co-creations and two more hard rocking numbers, the album ends on a good note with “Bad Time,” a song that rocks sounds a lot more like Jett’s early material. Overall, this album is only a must have if you are a huge fan of Joan Jett and The Blackhearts. Otherwise, it is two solid songs, a great cover and a bunch of average songs. Since I used the term “hard rock” and the album still isn’t predictable, I am going to be generous with my rating this week. RATING: 6 out of 10 Scorsese's The Departed misses the mark W aflr '* -::> '■ „,VC *; -f : V s ■n\ n Photo courtesy Rottentomatoes.com What do you get when you combine a proven storyline, Academy Award winning Di recting and a stellar cast? Typically the answer is something pretty sweet. Unfortu nately The Departed proves a rare miss. By Larry Feel News Editor larrx @ ionc inenui.com When you combine A-List Hollywood draw, a proven storyline, and an Academy Award winning director? Normally the answer would be an instant classic. Unfortunately Martin Scorsese’s latest venture The Departed seems to only be departing with his reputation. The premise was impressive, put Leonardo DiCaprio, Jack Nicholson, Matt Damon, Alec Baldwin, Martin Sheen and other top stars together with a dramatic and thrilling plot. Somewhere though the film departed with it’s dignity. Based on the Hong Kongmovie ‘WuJianDao’, the story follows two men from opposite sides of the law who are undercover within both the Massachusetts State Police and the Irish mafia, but violence and bloodshed boil when discoveries are made, and the moles are dispatched to find out their enemy’s identities. Scorsese fans will adore the cinematography; Nicholson and DiCaprio give stellar performances. The actors perform exceptionally well despite the often-stereotypical race and locality jokes, and Scorsese’s strange insistence on emphasizing the distinct dialect of the Boston area. Viewers in the northeast will feel appeased by the dialect; however, it is more likely that the typical viewer will simply find the trait comedic. The film begins with a crawl, intertwining the stories of Frances Costello (Nicholson), the Irish mafia kingpin; Billy Costigan, an undercover mole for the State Police; and Collin Sullivan (Damon), also a State trooper, but with a decidedly more checkered lifestyle. As the three cross paths, at first unknowingly, then finding themselves more and more deeply involved with each other’s lives, the suspense and drama builds to explosive levels. The films promise seeks to force its way out despite its drawbacks. Scorsese delivers to his fans the expected cinematic artistry, but somewhere between production and TUI WI ST GI ORGIAN presentation, things went horribly wrong. The films soundtrack is choppy, though utilizing his trademark rock score; the songs lack the appropriate fade in and out of the scenes that they are supposed to solidify. The drastic changes break the bond between the film and the audience, a decidedly non-Scorsese trait. Thelma Shoomaker, Scorsese’s film editor for most of his career, seems to be losing her touch. Not only were the score cuts distracting, but shoddy editing also encumbered what should have been incredible action scenes. Explosions were improperly cut, once freezing mid-shot and completely ruining the effect. What do you get w hen you combine a proven storyline. Academy Award winning Directing and a stellar cast? You get the potential for a mega-hit along the lines of Aviator, but like the Spruce Goose, The Departed just couldn't take flight. See you in 2008, Mr. Scorsese. Grade: C