Writing Example Round Two.

The Eight-Legged Groove Machine Returns

The Wonder Stuff
Construction for the Modern Vidiot (2005)
By Boris Hartl
8.4 Rating

The Wonder Stuff’s musical concoction of majestic guitars and sneering New Wave sensibilities topped with lyrical wit should have propelled the group into the lap of pop royalty.

For nearly a decade the formula worked as the Stourbridge, England, natives became indie-media darlings at home, starting with 1988’s Eight Legged Groove Machine. With a reputation for performing invigorating live shows led by singer Miles Hunt, The Wonder Stuff ultimately succeeded in crafting albums that matched the energy of its live-stage persona.

But any plans for music domination went askew as The Wonder Stuff only managed marginal success on the pop charts. U.S. audiences were simply indifferent all together. It sure didn’t help that the band followed an unremarkable period of little direction—covering Tommy Roe’s Dizzy with comedian Vic Reeves comes to mind—before the band crumbled in 1994 after the release of the underwhelming Construction For The Modern Idiot.

Following a six-year break, The Wonder Stuff reformed for a series of live shows, and its return was gloriously captured in Construction for the Modern Vidiot, a collection culling performances from 2000 to 2002 at the Forum and the Longest Day and Fleadh festivals.

In the liner notes, Hunt, whose bravado remained unchanged, wrote:

“It took us six years of not writing together, not playing together and not recording together to finally realise (sic) what was so (expletive) good about The Wonder Stuff,” he wrote in the liner notes. “We were a fantastic live band. Simple as that.”

The live footage is expertly captured and dynamically filmed with the popular choices included in this re-released DVD which made its official U.S. debut in 2005. The songs flow seamlessly from the bounce of “Who Wants to Be a Disco King” to Martin Bell’s fiddle push of “Ten Trenches Deep” to a revved-up version of John Lennon’s “Gimmie Some Truth.”

The DVD also showcases the band’s maturation from a guitar-based outfit singing about cartoon boyfriends and circle squares to one reveling in the steadfast instrumental additions of mandolins and violins. Lyrically, Hunt moved from bratty lines (”I didn’t like you very much when I met you/And now I like you even less” from “Unbearable”) to mature heart stompers (”there are no words to illustrate/a marijuana trip away/confided all I had to say/only to watch it drift away” from “Storm Drain”).

All of which point out that Hunt and company still operate in a separate phylum from their peers. The Wonder Stuff didn’t aim to write national working-class anthems like Pulp, and the quintet didn’t have the identity and humor issues afflicting Radiohead. And they still don’t.

All that Construction for the Modern Vidiot proves is this fact: The Wonder Stuff is simply a group of cheeky buggers who forge ahead crafting silly pop songs — a feat few do better. Welcome Back.

DVD Extras:

• Interviews
• Band Biography
• Behind the Scenes Footage

Module Week 12 Assignment: The News Release

Note: This is not an official news release. 

THE NORTH CAROLINA BIOTECHNOLOGY CENTER TO OPEN
NEW OFFICE AT THE NORTH CAROLINA RESEARCH CAMPUS

Contacts:
North Carolina Biotechnology Center:
Barry Teater, director of corporate communications.
W. Steven Burke, senior vice president of corporate affairs.
919-549-XXXX.

North Carolina Research Campus:
Dr. Andrew Conrad, chief scientific officer.
704-687-XXXX.

RESEARCH TRIANGLE PARK, N.C., Dec. 25, 2006 — The North Carolina Biotechnology Center will locate its new Charlotte Area Office at the North Carolina Research Campus in Kannapolis.

“This office is a great opportunity to leverage our shared efforts to develop biotechnology research, education, and business in the Charlotte region. Kannapolis will also benefit from this partnership,” said Dr. Andrew Conrad, the Research Campus chief scientific officer.

The Charlotte Area Office will be the fifth and final regional office of the Biotechnology Center. Others established across the state since 2003 include a Western Office in Asheville, a Piedmont Triad Office in Winston-Salem, an Eastern Office in Greenville and a Southeastern Office in Wilmington.

The small offices, each staffed by a director and an assistant, work to strengthen biotechnology research, business, education and workforce training in all parts of the state, drawing on the unique resources of each region.

W. Steven Burke, the Biotechnology Center’s senior vice president for corporate affairs, said, “Because biotechnology is complex, its development requires that varied resources work together. Partnerships are key to a successful biotechnology community. Locating our office at the Research Campus is a smart catalyst for scientific and economic development.”

The Charlotte Area Office will help institutions, schools and agencies identify area needs, goals, and niche capabilities; draw on the programs and activities of the North Carolina Biotechnology Center; and develop a regional Advisory Committee to guide biotechnology development — all toward the goal of creating biotechnology companies and the high-paying jobs they bring.

A Strategic Plan Priority

Developing biotechnology in all parts of the state is a major priority of the state’s blueprint for biotechnology development, New Jobs Across North Carolina: A Strategic Plan for Growing the Economy Statewide through Biotechnology. The 102-page document lists 54 strategies to strengthen education, business and workforce training programs. Such recommendation include expand funding for high-risk, early stage applied research to develop new products with commercial potential.

Some Recommendations Include:

• Increase funding for university research, particularly high-risk, early stage applied research, to facilitate a constant flow of new discoveries with future commercial potential;
• Earmark more funding to the community colleges to hire more instructors and purchase more equipment to train new workers in bioprocessing and biomanufacturing; and
• Create new investment funds to ensure young companies have access to early-stage investment capital.

Niche Capabilities

The Charlotte region has a growing foundation of resources and capabilities for biotechnology development, from university research and workforce training to technology transfer and company development. The region offers niche capabilities in fields that offer promise for scientific and economic development:

• Nanotechnology: The manipulation of matter on an ultra-small scale;
• Bioinformatics: The storage, retrieval and analysis of large amounts of biological data; and
• Biomedical Engineering: The development of prostheses, medical devices, diagnostic devices, drugs and other therapies.

More Information

The North Carolina Research Campus, located 10 minutes from Charlotte, is a 350-acre biotechnology center that will create as many 35,000 jobs. The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, North Carolina State and Duke universities will have research installations on site.

The North Carolina Biotechnology Center, headquartered in Research Triangle Park with five regional offices across the state, is a private, non-profit corporation supported by the North Carolina General Assembly. The Biotechnology Center’s mission is to provide long-term economic and societal benefits to North Carolina by supporting biotechnology research, business and education statewide.

###

Module Week 11 Assignment: The Blog

Battling the Rain at Shakori Hills

Note: I covered the third day of the Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival of Music and Dance (Oct. 8, 2006)

SILK HOPE, N.C. — For the second year in a row, the annual Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival of Music and Dance has been dubbed by some attendees as “Mudfest 2006.” Here in the parking lot of the 72-acre festival grounds, cars are covered in a soupy mix of mud and grass. And now a light drizzle grows in intensity as I gingerly move through the muck to the main gate.

But the weather doesn’t affect the mood of the ticket checker adored with dreadlocks, a yellow jacket and corduroy pants. The man continues to spin a hula hoop with stretched arms as if to welcome the rain.

Dance With Me

No dance partner? This isn’t a problem it seems at the Dance Tent where it takes only a few moments before you are engulfed by a large circle of barefoot dancers. I am paired with Elizabeth, an organic farmer who closely resembles actress Alexis Bledel. We spend the next 10 minutes learning the basic shag steps, but several missteps later, I realize my lack of rhythm makes it hard for me to succeed.

A Trip to “Antarctica”

There have been some great concept albums. The KISS classic, Destroyer comes to mind. The Who’s Tommy. Radiohead’s OK Computer. But the Never, based in Pittsboro, may be the first band to craft a storybook album focusing on a nuclear bomb and witches.

Antarctica centers on a young lad, Paul, who travels to the city to return the device to its owner. The book’s authors, the five-piece alternative band, handle the material with aplomb. The gentle guitar strumming and sunny harmonies provide a welcome contrast to the weather, and the music plays out well with the band’s young fans sitting in front of the stage. Behind them, a few kids shake their heads and flap their arms near a screen showing 40 different oil paintings from the book.

“Finger Billiards”

Billy Stevens sips hot chocolate from a biodegradable cup as he points out two teenage boys wandering to an open Carrom table.

“They’re back, so that means they are hooked,” he says with a smile.

Stevens can appreciate the addictiveness of the game that seems to attract newbies who can easily lose an hour playing on the square wooden board with four corner pockets. Commonly referred to as “finger billiards,” the game’s objective is simple.

Stevens tells me a player must flick a “striker” at black and white checkers, and victory is achieved when the 10 pieces, including a red one, dubbed the queen, find themselves in the pockets.

The game is a welcome distraction for some festival attendees who seek a break from the non-stop bluegrass and folk music dominating the festival. As the new players find, Carrom moves briskly and strategy plays a major role. Stevens, who is ranked 20th in the Carrom world rankings, tries to showcase the sport to anyone who wants to learn. That is why he’ll delay eating dinner for another hour just so he can hover around the nine tables and gently offer encouragement and tips to players.

“You’re flicking too hard,” he says. “Try guiding the striker.”

Stevens believes Carrom’s popularity could grow beyond the game shops into a wider market. There is no sarcasm in Stevens’ voice when he said the game would work well on ESPN next to the pool and poker programming. So Stevens is looking for an investor to fund his enthusiasm for the game to more lucrative heights. To build thousands of Carrom boards. To fund Carrom teams.

“To make $10 million, you need to invest $2 million,” he says. “And that is all I am looking for.”

And that makes demonstrations like the one here at Shakori Hills vital to growing the game. A sure draw would have been a 12-person tournament featuring some top players from the Southeast. But, alas, the cold rain stopped those plans.

“Out of the Rain”

The Duhks, (pronounced “ducks”) with their mix of gospel, roots, folk and bluegrass music, are made for Shakori Hills. Sure, their intensive instrumental skills and great vocal harmony are all over the map, but that’s a good thing.

They are also a sight to behold. Lead singer Jessica Havey is covered with tattoos and multi-percussionist Scott Senior plays like Animal from the Muppets. The group shined with an upbeat version of the Leonard Cohen tune Everybody Knows complete with a driving drum beat and the call-and-response of Death Came a Knockin’ is a highlight. But the song that drew the most cheers was the aptly named, Out of the Rain.