I�ve been thinking lately that one of the more distressing signs that the music video scene has gotten itself stuck in neutral gear is the fact that the medium has, to date, produced so few real stylists. What I mean by this is that there seems to be a distinct paucity of artists whose clips convey a discernible, and ongoing, sense of that performer or group�s individual nature. Now understand that I�m not speaking here about music per se; there is always enough good music to go around (well, almost always), and we like different singers and bands precisely because they each give us something a bit different in the way of sound, or point of view, or just plain panache. It is the style that separates them, and it is the appreciation (or rejection) of that style that enables us, as listeners, to define our tastes and preferences, our likes and dislikes.

When it comes to watching groups or singers in their video clips, though, it�s a different story. In general, the most successful video peformers are those �blessed� with either outrageous personalities (say, David Lee Roth or Cyndi Lauper), high-concept attitudes (one clenched Billy Idol fist is worth a thousand chords), or some strong extra-musical sense, be it visually inclined (mid-to-late �70s David Bowie) or comedically inclined (Cheech and Chong, �Weird� Al Yankovic). We�ve previously discussed in this space the stamp that particular directors like Zbigniew Rybczynski or Stephen Johnson can put on a video, but that�s an entirely different matter altogether.

I guess what I�m driving at is that it is all too rare to find any video artists who seem even remotely interested in accomplishing anything more in a clip than simply promoting the song at hand through any of the means detailed in the paragraph above. If videos are ever really to get anywhere near the realm of art, and thus function as true stylistic representations of the words and music they are supposed to reflect and enhance, then we�re going to need more videos like our spotlight pick of the month— U2�s �With Or Without You.� I honestly can�t think of too many other videos I�ve ever seen that so evocatively convey a song�s mood, or a band�s inner core. This is basically a performance clip, but the technical methods used by director Meiert Avis (there is a constant shift from black and white to color and back, from sharper focus to soft focus and back, and even the texture of the film itself is used purposefully) intersect with U2�s emotionally-charged presentation (there are moments here when you feel that the only thing keeping lead singer Bono from exploding through the television set is the serenity of the Edge�s soaring guitar lines) of the song in such a fashion that we see, hear and feel the power and commitment with which this group approaches their work. In previous clips (most notably �Gloria� and �In The Name Of Love�), it often felt like U2 was reaching for something just out of their grasp. On �With Or Without You,� they�ve found it. It�s style. And I hope more bands making videos can find theirs.

SNAP SHOTS

Strikes, Spares and Shmenges! Camper Van Beethoven, �Take the Skinheads Bowling�—I guess that in the great ying-yang of it all, this clip should go thumb in hole with Nena�s �99 Luftballoons,� as here, instead of red balloons rising to the heavens as a symbol of mankind�s undying dreams of world disarmament, we have man�s indifference to his environment represented by an eternally rolling bowling ball, which travels down country lane and urban back alley, past hotel and hovel, through bridge and tunnel, perfect in its inscrutability like some interstellarly overdriven orphaned remnant of the monolith from 2001. Who, Camper Van Beethoven cries out, can save the planet from almost certain extinction? Nelson Burton, Jr.? Chris Shenkel? The ghost of Billy Welu? Only the skinheads know for sure, and unless you�re willing to stake them to 10 beers or 10 frames (whichever comes first), they�re not telling. In the meantime, remember what Confucius say: Pair of bowling shoes picked up at desk like bottle of Budweiser drunk early in evening. Can never truly be owned—only rented...

You Mean I Get A Choice? Dead Or Alive, �Something In My House�—In the October, �85 issue of this magazine, while reviewing this band�s first hit, I wrote the following: �Dead Or Alive, �You Spin Me Round�— Not in my house, you won�t!� So what I want to know is, where the hell is my royalty check? This guy Peter Burns sits there peeling bananas, spitting grapes, and fondling himself, while I, the poor soul he�s ripped off, still have to work for a living?! Sheesh. And, speaking of dead or alive... He�s No Fun—He Fell Right Over! Gregg Allman, �I�m No Angel�—Let�s put it this way; from this point forward, the term �grizzled veteran� has acquired a whole new meaning...

Rock Sports Reference Of The Month Contest Winner Declared! Iggy Pop, �Isolation�— Sure, it�s great to see Iggy this, er, domesticated (See Ig cook! See Ig wash dishes! See Ig read a book!), but if you ask me, the highlight here is the following inspirational verse: �I need some lovin� like a body needs a soul/l need some lovin� like a fastball needs control.� I can just hear the Tigers� PA announcer: �And now, to honor America, let�s all rise, and join James Osterberg in the singing of �Search And Destory�...�

A Bleeding Ear, A Trash Compactor, And Thou: The Cult, �Love Removal Machine�— Free meets Grand Funk meets Led Zeppelin II in a falls-countanywhere-in-the-building Marshall Amp Death Match? Yahooo! What a band! They look awful! They play awful! And with a coda, yet! Do you know how hard it must be to finger-synch a guitar solo this long and this terrible? You think Alvin Lee might have been a consultant on this? Does everything on their new album sound like this? If it does, I may be in love!

SWEETHEARTS OF SIGMA CHI

THE UNHEARD MUSIC (Key Video)

Bill Holdship

by

It seems odd that a full■ length feature documentary I would be devoted to X. I I mean, I remember people I thinking it was weird when I the Who got their own docuI mentary with The Kids Are Alright, and X haven�t exactly been at the top of the charts throughout their mostly impressive career. Still, there�s a large cult of X fans out there who�d probably love to see this film, and since The Unheard Music could have been subtitled The Unseen Movie during its theatrical release (e.g., it never even made it to Detroit), home video is the perfect vehicle for bringing it to those fans. Unfortunately, if you�re not already an X fan, The Unheard Music probably won�t do a lot to turn you into one. And if you�re one of those people who think that X frequently sink into the lowest levels of pretension, this film probably won�t do a lot to change your mind.

First, I am an X fan, though it wasn�t always that way. I�ve gotta admit that when the first hardcore bands came out of L.A.— and X seemed to be the leaders of the pack—I was turned off by the whole thing. And The Decline Of Western Civilization—the film that introduced most of us in the Midwest to the scene—didn�t do much to rectify the situation. Quite simply, it just looked UGLY and MEAN, and my interpretation of rock �n� roll never had much to do with those two adjectives. Well, when The Unheard Music deals with the years X and others were playing the Masque club (�There was no live music in L.A. at that time,� says John Doe, ��so we said �Let�s play!� �), it still looks UGLY and MEAN—and it all kicked off a movement that continues to plague us with a lot of BAD music to this very day. Granted, X set out to portray the dark, dirty side of L.A. as a metaphor for Western culture in general—and it�s probably true that no band�s done it any better than they have. On the other hand, after being in L.A. for several months now, I�m aware that UGLINESS isn�t the whole picture when jt comes to L.A.—or Western culture in general, for that matter.

I think as X grew, they began to realize this a little more, too— and, with time, they turned into an excellent rock �n� roll band. What really made me do a total turnaround on the band was when I began to hear the roots that were between the lines in their music, and the movie documents this side of the band quite effectively (though I would�ve loved to see something of the Knitters, the acoustic, countryesque X offshoot). We see the great (and recently departed from the band) Billy Zoom discussing his musical roots. His father was a musician, and Billy learned to play all kinds of instruments (we see him playing a clarinet in one home movie segment). And with that explained, Billy goes into a letter-perfect rendition of Scotty Moore�s solo on Elvis�s �Just Because.� Later, Billy says he remembers reading an early review that really slagged the Ramones in Rolling Stone. �Everything they didn�t like sounded great to me,� he says. Next, drummer D.J. Bonebrake demonstrates that he�s quite the musician as well, and he mentions in passing that his biggest musical influence is Captain Beefheart. Elsewhere in the film, we see John Doe and Exene dueting in a living room on an acoustic version of Hank Williams�s �Ramblin� Man.� And it�s this blend of various elements—from the roots of Hank and Sun to the avant garde stylings of Beefheart and the fun thrash of early punk, mixed with Exene�s artsy leanings (also illustrated frequently in the fijm)—that turned X into one of the more interesting American b^nds of the early �80s.

Writer-director W.T. Morgan also uses an assortment of vintage black & white film clips to indict a wide variety of subjects in The Unheard Music. Among his targets are American radio, television and (especially) the commercialism of rock. These are some of the best moments in the film. There�s one scene that shows the unveiling of the John Lennon statue in L.A., complete with a circus clown leading the crowd in �Happy Birthday, John,� that almost appears too absurd to be real. Another montage effectively indicts racism in America by following a display of symptoms of the disease with some classic footage of the great Fats Domino in action. And one of the movie�s best scenes juxtaposes an interview with Bob Biggs of Slash Records (the label that originally signed X) and an MCA Records executive who repeatedly passed on the band until it was too late. The latter label decided to go with Point Blank instead because the exec was convinced that �they will be the next Journey.� This is followed up with an old promo film from the Ford Motor Company introducing the Edsel.

As the movie draws to a close, however, it grows rather tedious and boring. There�s a montage that is supposed to illustrate the band on tour, but most of it is comprised of post cards from various American cities. And near the conclusion, there�s a long interlude that shows the band learning a song during rehearsal that�s a guaranteed cure for insomnia. Better that these long, drawn-out and boring segments would�ve been devoted to more detail on the band�s background. We learn nothing of their personal lives. The death of Exene�s sistersomething that�s obviously had a profound and lasting effect on her—is just barely touched upon. Where did these people come from and what were the things that shaped them? These are the things the movie misses—and this is why, in the end, The Unheard Music really doesn�t tell you enough about X.

Still, the film finishes up with what is apparently a promo video for �I Must Not Think Bad Thoughts� from the More Fun In The New World LP. The video will obviously never be played on MTV—or any television video show, for that matter. The clip features extremely gruesome footage from Vietnam and El Salvador, as well as other scenes of violence and war. Ronald Reagan figures in, as does grotesque American commercialism and plenty of antiAmerican sentiment. (One recalls that John Doe had a bit part in Oliver Stone�s Salvador, one of last year�s best films). It�s like the grand culmination of statements that have been made throughout The Unheard Music. It�s UGLY and MEAN—but it makes all the sense in the world in this context. Along with Bob Dylan�s �Jokerman,� it just might be the best use of the video medium I�ve ever seen— and one hopes it�s a direction the band will follow now that they�re at a definite crossroads in their career.