I went down to the basement of Copley at 4:30 last night to get some snacks from the vending machine. For the first time at Georgetown, I feared for my safety as I walked through the halls of my dorm.

Strangely, the numerous burglaries in my dorm earlier in the year didn’t have the same effect. Maybe it was because of the late hour (similar to the times when the recent incidents took place in LXR), or perhaps it was because when I walked into the building a few minutes earlier, the security guard was fast asleep with her head between her arms, and didn’t even bother to look up when I swiped right in front of her.In that moment, I understood how the residents of LXR must feel.

Other people did too–I was relatively unsurprised to hear that an RA in the building was carrying a knife. Reports of more assaults in Village A and Henle are somehow no longer shocking. Is this past weekend to be a watershed for crime at Georgetown? Online comments on a recent Hoya article covering the LXR sexual assault suggest many things—mostly ridiculous, like calling for racial profiling, since all of the descriptions seem to be the same, of young dark-skinned males (if only everyone didn’t believe in race).

Beyond the unnecessary racial polarization of the issue, some users have suggested that DPS become a full-fledged police force. This newspaper’s position is well-documented on the issue of arming DPS, but anonymous users are calling for much more than that. They believe that Georgetown’s lack of a proper police force encourages crime, as a bubble where the security officers have no discretion or training to investigate crimes.Therefore, Georgetown will continue to attract crime as a target of opportunity.

Arming DPS further will apparently stop this.The real answer probably lies in more patrols, not more weapons. Rather than commit to upgrading DPS into an actual police department (unthinkable and unnecessary, with MPD just a phone call away), the university might want to begin by rethinking its patrolling policy.

According to another article in today’s Hoya, one security guard covers Village A, Alumni Square, LXR and Walsh. Allison Mead (SFS ‘10), a concerned student quoted for the story, raises an interesting question that is buried at the end of the article: “I have the emergency system. Why didn’t I get a text message to say, ‘Lock your doors; there is an intruder’?”

Perhaps because her door should have already been locked, but that’s beside the point: students should be able to feel safe inside their dorms, to not fear going to sleep in their own beds. Beyond that, there are so many issues here—involving fear, race, campus security (or lack thereof), the abilities, tactics and working conditions of DPS and Securitas (the security company notable for its sleeping guards)—that can’t really be solved with one showy strategy, or even just by urging everyone to lock their doors.

Many of the actions that have already been taken in LXR—replacing the GOcard reader, locking the emergency stairwell doors that permit anyone to bypass the guard desk—should have been done a long time ago. What to do next is the most difficult question; hopefully the debate won’t succumb to fear and choose costly and ineffective options.

-Jeff Reger, Associate Editor

Although Bryan Scary wasn’t headlining, it was pretty clear that was whom most of the crowd filling the Rock and Roll Hotel on Saturday night was there to see. Looking a bit like Alice Cooper (the eyeliner helped), Scary put on a theatric stageshow, backed up by his stellar touring band, the jumpsuit-bedecked Shreading Tears. Maybe it was just the small space echoing the yells of die-hards; nevertheless, it’s pretty rare to hear a crowd respond to an opener with calls for an encore.

With props to accompany nearly every song in his epic saga of “aeronautics” from the forthcoming Flight of the Knife album (see the Voice’s review), Scary’s high energy performance more than justified his reputation for superb live shows. The tale is patently ridiculous, involving mad scientists, aliens/astronauts (maybe?), a woman named Suzy and a young boy who dreams of an air flying machine—and immensely entertaining in its absurdity. It’s hard to tell if the story is truly tongue-in-cheek because Scary performs as each character with such sincerity that you want to believe him.

Although prog-rock is nothing new (see: the 1970s), Scary’s take on the rock opera blends musicianship with melodic songwriting—and benefits from intense, high volume performance. The squeaky clean mix on the record allows his brilliant songwriting to shine through, but at the cost of sounding a bit more rock musical than raucous, glam-inspired rock and roll.

Live, the band’s talent is beyond reproach as they navigate rapid fire key changes in typical prog-rock style, and thankfully avoid typical prog excesses by steering clear of too long songs with extended solos. Instead each number is packed with so many ideas that the “look-what-I-can-do” factor is minimized in favor of telling the story.

Oh, and did I mention the wicked guitarist of the Shreading Tears (Graham Norwood) is legally blind?

Murder Mystery opened for Bryan Scary and the Shreading Tears, playing a fairly mundane version of indie pop. Lead singer Jeremy Coleman sings a bit too much like Lou Reed, but can’t really pull it off—maybe Coleman should try singing off key a bit, and investing some energy into the performance. The band’s songs are jaunty and pleasant, heavily invested in the pop tradition and ultimately not that interesting. Mediocrity comes easy, and the band’s lack of energy was especially prominent in apposition with Bryan Scary.

Photos by Jeff Reger, Leisure Editor

These days, I tend to be less obsessive compulsive about “wearing in” great new songs. Some folks can still set trusty ol’ iTunes on repeat-track-ad-infinitum mode. Meanwhile, I now squirm anytime someone decides to play a song more than twice in a row. I don’t care if “Sexual Eruption” is catchy, Shira Hecht, knock it off.

There are always exceptions. For example, I’ve recently noticed that I maintain a soft spot for acoustic numbers about large bodies of water. Case in point: “Deep Blue Sea” by Daniel Rossen (Grizzly Bear, Department of Eagles). “Deep Blue Sea” is one of Rossen’s home recordings and allegedly evolved from an old British sea song.

Though less ambitious than the standouts of Yellow House (2006), “Deep Blue Sea” sustains a graceful balance between lo-fi intimacy and calculated overlays. Rossen’s guileless vocals emanate a ripe, hypnotic calm that melds perfectly with the spacious acoustics of his (cough) home. It’s not that “Deep Blue Sea” is better than Grizzly Bear’s more refined productions, the song simply lets its natural earnest do all the work. And by the time the whistling kicks in, man, we’re just gliding. Reveries abound!

“Deep Blue Sea” is available for enjoyment at http://hypem.com/.

—Dan Cook

Photo courtesy of departmentofeagles.com