The Clackamas print., February 11, 2004, Page 7, Image 7

F ebruary
T he C lackamas P rint •
11, 2004
7
Dose and Jel get in touch with Themselves7
Amy Cashman
T he C lackamas P rint
Musical group Themselves has
put together a combination of
unique sounds and creative verses
which are definitely worth listening
to in their 2004 album “The No
Music Remixed.”
They combine the old with the
new by blending the ’power of
musical instruments with the pierc­
ing sounds of digital media. With
plenty of creative twists, these
artists make their songs last by
never keeping the beat the same for
too long.
This album may be classified as
hip-hop, but it strikes me as more
of a mixture of alternative and
house music with a hint of rap.
With this blond, it should appeal to
a diverse audience, those willing to
get in touch with Themselves.
Some parts of this album are
kind of eerie, with soft sounds and
screeching noises. Other elements
focus on the bass and treble. I
would recommend this album to
anyone who likes to hear the rhyth­
mical impact that music can have,
similar to the sweet sound Pink
Floyd. In fact, one might think of
this album as a mixture of Pink
Floyd and Insane Clown Posse.
Formally known as Them, the
group Themselves is a combination
of Doseone’s vocals and Jel’s beats.
Doseone is described as a “roily
polly gumhj^ lyrical gymnastic
genius” by Gnoosic.com, but the
beat blended into the words so well
that I’m not sure if I agree or dis­
agree with that comment. It was
difficult at times to pick out what
he was saying, but from what I can
tell, he is a gifted rapper and his
lyrics come out swift and clean.
Listen to this CD a second time
and be prepared to be taken to
another level of music.
This group seems , to know
Themselves well enough to take
hip-hop to another level. Portland
hip-hop is a mixture of different
sounds that come from different
areas. Themselves seems to fit that
mold. They are definitely talented
and I recommend this album for
anyone willing to venture a little
farther into the world of hip-hop.
After listening to this CD, check
out the band’s other albums, as well
as albums by similar artists Deep
Puddle Dynamics, Clouddead,
Greenthink and the Anticon Crew.
Themselves is performing at
Dante’s, located on West Burnside
right next to the Burnside Bridge
INTERNET PHOTO
on Feb. 14. For more information,
visit Dante’s website at www.dan- Themselves (Jel left, and Doseône right) take hip-hop to the limit with their latest
teslive.com.
contribution to society “The No Music Of Aiffs: The No Music Remixed.”
Spanish-speaking troupe strikes American fancy
Isaiah Creel
A & E E ditor
Teatro Milagro’s production
of “mipueblo.biz” in the
McLoughlin Auditorium last
Wednesday was a cross-culture
INTERNET PHOTO
Sister Dolores (Danel
Malan) teaches Saturdina
(Maya Malan-Conzalez).
collision of past, present and
future that is guaranteed' to
open new avenues of thought
among its audience.
“Mipueblo.biz,” written by
Danel Malan and directed by
Karin Magaldi, is a story
recounting the history of the
Incas as told by Maestro
Agripino (played by Omar
Vargas).
While walking
through
the
countryside,
Agripino happens upon a mis­
sionary on the run from revo­
lutionaries.
Sister Dolores
(Malan) is going through a
spiritual crisis after the death
of her friend and fellow mis­
sionary. She seeks answers
from Maestro Agripino, and
desires greatly to learn his
shamanic ways.
Maestro Agripino, however,
is not alone during that fateful
stroll. With him is Chavelo
(Ricardo • Delgado), a local
farmer and apprentice of sorts
to Agripino. Chavelo is wary
of Sister Dolores and her
magic box (what she calls a
“laptop”), claiming, “She’ll
suck out our fat and take us to
a place she calls Heaven!”
While Chavelo is making his
distrust known, a young
townswoman named Saturdina
(Maya Malan-Gonzalez) comes
along just in time to defend
Sister Dolores and her futuris­
tic technology. Back and forth,
Saturdina and Chavelo argue
until Maestro Agripino finally
allows Sister Dolores to remain
there in the village.
While there in the village,
Sister
Dolores
teaches
Saturdina the joys of crochet­
ing and the wonder that is the
Internet,
while
Maestro
Agripino
teaches
Sister
Dolores (and the audience) the
history of the Incas.
The dialogue of this play
was set up in sort of a Spanish-
English, English-Spanish style.
The first few lines might be in
English, but the next would be
in Spanish. While it seems that
this back-and-forth style might
be confusing, the actors did an
excellent job of carrying the
non Spanish-speaking audience
along for the ride.
Although dramatic, the dia­
logue was not too intense or
too deep, and there were a
number of laughs to. be had
(although there were likely
more laughs that I didn’t get
due to my lack of Spanish flu­
ency.) The execution of the
lines was very good and,
despite a couple of stumbles,
their overall acting was enough
to captivate the audience.
Throughout the main story,
Agripino recounts a number of
folk stories from native Incan
ancestry, and in effect, there
are quite a few plays crossing
different historical points of
interest within the one central
story.
The use of masks to
recount these stories added
another level of imagery to the
standard one-act format.
Giving the ever-growing
Hispanic population of the
United States, it becomes
increasingly important for
those already living in America
to become not only tolerant of
these new editions to the pop­
ulation, but appreciative of it.
“Mipueblo.biz” is the kind of
play that really gives the view­
ers an opportunity to experi­
ence an aspect of the Hispano-
American tradition apart from
Taco Bell, and the chance to
dispel some long-held precon­
ceptions. '
INTERNET PHOTO
Maestro Agripino (Omar
Vargas) invites the audi­
ence into his imagination.
——————————————————— — n
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