Errors-To: owner-ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu Reply-To: ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu Sender: ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu From: ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu To: ecto-request@ns1.rutgers.edu Bcc: ecto-digest-outbound@ns1.rutgers.edu Subject: ecto #380 ecto, Number 380 Wednesday, 9 December 1992 Today's Topics: *-----------------* HGP-Hey StephenT & TerryP! HGP Some strangers happinesses Male vocalists Re: Male vocalists Why not? this'n'that, even about Happy :) Happy's new one Re: quantity of quality The poise that refreshes? ======================================================================== Date: Mon, 7 Dec 92 22:33:40 EST From: WretchAwry Subject: HGP-Hey StephenT & TerryP! I got your packages today! Yay! (For those who don't remember or who weren't around, both of their packages got lost in the mail last year.) Who's still to come? Meredith, Jessica...who else should I be expecting packages from? Martin? Doug? SteveVanD? Who else? *Please* let me know. Thanks! Btw, I haven't opened any of the packages, I'm keeping everything together and intact until I get them all, so if you've sent other music in the package, thanks and i will get to it. (Jens reminded me to say this, because he asked me if I'd heard what he sent. I will, I will, I really really will...thanks!) Vickie ======================================================================== Date: Mon, 7 Dec 92 23:42:06 -0800 From: Michael G Peskura Subject: HGP Vickie, I have sent you a tape, also. Mp ======================================================================== Date: Tue, 8 Dec 92 18:33:46 +0100 From: Ulrich Grepel Subject: Some strangers happinesses Hi all you Ectophiles, thanks to Klaus I now have all 5 Happy CDs. Nice stuff, really, though I don't like SOME of the songs at all. But these are absolutely compensated by the others. Again, I cannot choose a single favourite song by now, there are several ones that I really love. And, another 'again', I presented the CDs to the same bunch of people who already had the chance to listen to Warpaint. I played 'Rhodes I' and 'Ecto' to them, they 'survived' it (the CDs, not the listeners, but they did too). Some of the reactions: 'Fine, but WHAT HAS IT TO DO WITH KATE BUSH?' (Remember, they try to connect everything I bring along to Kate because they know of my fandom) and, while Ecto (the song) was playing 'Oh, this sounds like Kate going through a Vocoder'. Later, when one of the latecomers saw the covers, he said 'Now I know why you have bought them - just for the pictures'. As the mother of our host came in, she said 'Who and what is this? I cannot put it into any category!' The girl friend of one of the others said 'I think you only like female voices, do you? And why?' The only thing I could say to that was that she is right, and that in my humble opinion most (non-opera) male singers can't sing at all or don't have a pleasant voice. Take Mark Knopfler as an example. Wonderful guitar, but terrible speaking. As I said before, the guys I have introduced to Happy the second time nowadays have a different musical taste than me. After the second Happy CD they insisted on something different - and chose Queen's 'A Night At The Opera'. Not bad stuff too (Hi Ilka). After a long pause after that CD I finally tried Loreena McKennitt's 'Parallel Dreams'. This one (that is also quite new for my ears) survived only two songs before it was banned. That's a pity, because if I am honest, until now I like Loreena's albums better than Happy's (am I on the right list? Sure am I, because I only like them less, but not not at all. On the other hand, Happy's music is better for general use, Loreena is only recommended if you are in a special mood or if you are willing to enter that special mood). BTW: Why are there people out there who cannot recommend 'To Drive the Cold Winter Away'? If I think about it, that's the one album of Loreena's earlier three that pleases me most. But if you don't like Loreena, you probably will hate TDTCWA. The only thing I don't like in Loreena's albums is when Cedric Smith starts bringing in his voice into the foreground. Remember my above statement about male singers? Of course there are exceptions, take Richard Thornton in 'All The Love' as an example, but he probably cannot be counted as a 'male' voice then. BTW: I really love it when Kate goes gurgling with razor blades... What I have found out is that often male persons like female singers and vice versa for their voices. I don't want to import the gay/bi/straight thread from Love-Hounds into Ecto, but I wonder if it has to do something with that part of being a human being? Now I know that there are many female people on Ecto, rdt and gaffa, and surely many if you try to do some statistics about the distribution of accounts to some mail systems between male and female users. But I know several women who don't like female voices at all. An English lady (to Ilka: you know her, she once was a colleague of yours) once had listened to one of the tapes in my car. After recognizing what she heard, she searched for any alternatives and finally said 'Oooh! I really HATE KATE BUSH for her high and tooooo female voice!' The only thing I have to add is that this Englishwoman is quite binary in her feelings: loving or hating and nothing inbetween. This is something I have seen in another particular English lady we all know: Kate. (oops, this isn't gaffa...) It is just the case that she doesn't want to show her hatings to others because she hates that. Is this a particular English habit? Or is all this only pure speculation? Enough for now, Uli ======================================================================== Date: Tue, 8 Dec 92 12:18:49 MST From: dbx@olympic.atmos.colostate.edu (Doug Burks) Subject: Male vocalists Greetings, Uli asked for opinions about preferences for male and female voices according to sex or sexual preference. In Ecto, I certainly have seen no consistency at all. Both male and female Ectophiles have professed loving only female voices. Like most things in this world, it's just a matter of taste. Personally, I love a long list of both male and female voices. Most of the female voices have been mentioned on Ecto at one time or other. On the male side, just off the top of my head I come up with Harry Nilsson, Richie Furay, David Crosby, Richard Greene, Elvis Presley, John Doe, Robin Zander (when he's not screaming (admittedly quite rare :) )), all of whom have beautiful voices. I'm sure if I had my record collection handy, I'd realize I've forgotten many others. Then don't forget the gorgeous close harmonies of the Beatles, CSN, and the Persuasions. Go back further in time, and you run into the voices of crooners like Bing Crosby (whose speaking voice was musical) and THE Voice, Frank Sinatra. On top of that there are voices that may not be pleasant or beautiful but are still great. Bob Dylan, Lou Reed, and Neil Young couldn't hold a note to save their lives, but are still wonderful vocalists. Listening to Warren Zevon or John Fogerty tear into a song is sheer delight, though I wouldn't call either of their voices pleasant. I could go on and on, but you get the point. Certainly, women belong equally well in this category, such as Kate, Melissa Etheridge, and Toni Childs. In the end, it's all just a matter of taste. I'm sure some (if not all :) ) of the names on my list have produced *yecch!*'s among Ectophiles. I am certainly not going to criticize anyone who prefers to listen only to female (or male) voices, (though I think they're missing a lot of great voices. :) ) Doug Burks _O_ dbx@olympic.atmos.colostate.edu |< She really is!! ======================================================================== Subject: Re: Male vocalists Date: Tue, 08 Dec 92 14:46:00 EST From: Angelos Kyrlidis Hi, Doug writes: >In Ecto, I certainly have seen no consistency at >all. Both male and female Ectophiles have professed loving only female >voices. Like most things in this world, it's just a matter of taste. I will agree. In fact, I don't think there's any correlation at all. >Personally, I love a long list of both male and female voices. Me too. Although I must admit that because of ecto/gaffa I have been paying too much attention to female vocalists lately. Since *most* recommendations here are about obscure female vocalists, I find myself knowing and liking a lot more obscure female than male vocalists. What male vocalists I like, I find to be more mainstream. [Did the above make any sense at all?] Here are a few: Peter Gabriel, Lou Reed, Gordon Gano, Black Francis, Trent Reznor, Brian Eno, Freddie Mercury, David Bowie, Prince, Matt Johnson, Bob Marley, Robert Plant, Bono, Micheal Stipe, Sting, Jim Morrison, and last but not least Tom Robinson. What I would *really* like to see, is an ecto-like list for obscure male vocalists, so that the whole spectrum of music can be covered!! Has Kevin ever done any singing? :) >In the end, it's all just a matter of taste. Exactly! Angelos ------- 'Throw off your coat, butter some toast, put another coffee on Lie down on the bed, lay back your head, smoke another cigarette And listen to the radio'-Tom Robinson ======================================================================== Date: 8 December 1992 16:00:28 CST From: Subject: Why not? Angelos writes: >What I would *really* like to see, is an ecto-like list for obscure male >vocalists, so that the whole spectrum of music can be covered!! Why not simply talk about such chanteurs (and their non-obscure counterparts, for that matter), in ecto? It is common knowledge among all of us that we are anything but doctrinaire on what the domain of this list is. The infrastruc- ture is already in place here; to paraphrase Plunkett, see your opportunities and take 'em :-). Mitch ======================================================================== Subject: this'n'that, even about Happy :) From: klaus@inphobos.w.open.de (Cosmic Vagabond) Date: Tue, 08 Dec 92 23:23:15 GMT Martin revealed to title of Happy's sixth album: > d) It's called ... (drumroll) ... Equipoise ! If I only knew how to pronounce that. :) My guess is 'poise' like 'pause'. Right? Vickie replying to my rejection of Syd Straw's "Surprise": > Oh no, not the song "Sphinx"! That's a *great* song! It's my favorite, > anyway. Worth the entire album, which does tend to be uneven to me. I Well, I especially listened to that song again, but it still doesn't sound that good to me. Thanks for the Bel Canto info, Vickie! I've now been told that BC have done videos at least for "Birds of Passage", "Shoulder To The Wheel" and "Shimmering, Warm and Bright". > Jeff > (who wonders what the cover will look like--more Happy art or another > photo?) I would definitely like to see another painting. Someone who prefers annother photo? Angelos reminded me: > Well, since there isn't *that* much happening around ecto anyway, I thought > I'd post my as-of-this-moment list of the top 10 records of 1992. If you (the ectophile in general, not only Angelos) should be participating at the "5th annual usenet best album of the year poll", I would like to ask you to mail me a copy of your vote as well. Then I could find out what the ectophiles' favourite albums are and post it here. If you haven't read about this poll and like to get details, let me know. After some more times listening to Vaya Con Dios' "Time Flies", I have know decided to like them. Shortly after that, we saw part of an interview with Dani Klein on MTV, followed by a live performance of "At the parallel". We are now thinking about seeing them in March. This sunday we will see "Bobo in white wooden houses" in Cologne. Getting the tickets was not easy, as none of the ticket offices in Wuppertal and Cologne did know about this gig, nor the group. Now you know how popular they are. All the replies we got were "Bobo who???". We finally got them directly from the venue. Spelling of the groups name in different magazine was quite funny: Bobo in white wodden houses Bobo in the white house Even the tickets have it wrong, listing "wodden". ___________________________________________________________ . * | "Tell me all the plans you have for the great beyond. | _ . * .* . | Will you be physical again, or be a cosmic vagabond." | (_) . | --- Happy Rhodes --- | . . o | Klaus "cosmic vagabond" Kluge klaus@inphobos.w.open.de | <== ======================================================================== From: S.L.Fagg@bnr.co.uk Subject: Re: this'n'that, even about Happy :) Date: Wed, 9 Dec 92 10:31:55 BST On Tue, 08 Dec 92 at 23:23:15 GMT klaus@inphobos.w.open.de (Cosmic Vagabond) wrote: > Martin revealed to title of Happy's sixth album: > > d) It's called ... (drumroll) ... Equipoise ! > If I only knew how to pronounce that. :) > My guess is 'poise' like 'pause'. Right? This may not be how it's pronounced in North America (they have some funny ideas about how to speak English over there sometimes :-)) but I would pronounce 'poise' (in 'Equipoise' and when used as a word in its own right) to rhyme with 'boys' rather than 'paws'. > > Jeff > > (who wonders what the cover will look like--more Happy art or another > > photo?) > I would definitely like to see another painting. Someone who prefers > annother photo? Yes. I'll put in a vote for another photo. I've been wondering for some time what John Carder Bush would make of Happy. > Angelos reminded me: > > Well, since there isn't *that* much happening around ecto anyway, I thought > > I'd post my as-of-this-moment list of the top 10 records of 1992. > If you (the ectophile in general, not only Angelos) should be participating > at the "5th annual usenet best album of the year poll", I would like to ask > you to mail me a copy of your vote as well. Then I could find out what the > ectophiles' favourite albums are and post it here. If you haven't read > about this poll and like to get details, let me know. I'm surprised that people can find ten 1992 albums worth voting for. I don't have the listings here with me at work, but of the 50+ CDs I've bought so far this year I doubt there's ten 1992 releases among them (in the pop/rock field that is, there've been some much appreciated new 'classical' releases this year). Much of what I have bought has been back catalogue stuff (and a special mention must go to Neale who found some real gems for me which I'd not been able to find in London). Even the relatively recent stuff often turns out to be things that were released a year or two ago which I am only now catching up on due to personal recommendation (frequently from the net). Much of this may perhaps be laid at the door of the pathetic pop/rock media in the UK. If your bag isn't Top 40 or metal, or some other 'genre' then you're out of luck. How do Ectophiles feel 1992 stacks up against previous years for quantity of quality music released? And what was the best year you can remember for great new music releases? -- Regards Steve Fagg ( S.L.Fagg@bnr.co.uk +44-279-402437 ) BNR Europe Ltd., London Road, Harlow, Essex, CM17 9NA, UK *** "Better drowned than duffers. If not duffers, won't drown". *** ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 09 Dec 1992 11:05:14 EST From: Chris Sampson Hello all you ectophiles, you, I've been out of the reading thing, what with work and all the attendant lame excuses, so forgive my non-sequitir-ness and possibly out-of-tuneness regarding recent developments (or not). [Confused yet?] Hang on.... This question goes out to Ms. Meredith Tarr [who gave me the EcTo Mailing list address when I called the Wesleyan Station back in March of 1992.......] Meredith, you there? I was wondering if you would happen to know the whereabouts of one Cathy Kreger....not so much geographically (probably on Long Island, where I used to see her play every Thursday night at Canterbury Ales), but rather musically. I am now listening to Grand Central Waltz. DO YOU KNOW OF WHOM I SPEAK? She used to play frequently at or near Wesleyan...... Has she put out any other CDs???? Chris (aka Chris O->) as per Martin's list.......:):):) Seen on a recent pin-back button: "My karma ran over your dogma" ======================================================================== Subject: Happy's new one Date: Wed, 09 Dec 92 12:47:55 EST From: Angelos Kyrlidis Hmmm, I haven't commented on that one yet, have I? [Thanks Klaus, for reminding me]. Title: Equipoise. Nice one. From webster-on-line: 1. equi.poise \'ek-w*-.po.iz, 'e--kw*-\ n 1: a state of equilibrium 2: COUNTERBALANCE Kind of limits the commercial appeal though, since I can't imagine 16 year olds running to the record store after seeing her breakthrough video on MTV, and asking for equipoise. But then, it brings a new level of sophistication to her titles. She has a fondness for one word titles, it seems. My first reaction when I read Martin's post, was 'sounds like a Jean Michel Jarre title, to me', then I thought that probably Mitch had something to do with it :) , and now I am pleased by it. I hope that it indicates that the album itself will be equilibrated, but hopefully the opposing forces musically will be big ones. Cover: Hmmm. If it's going to be released in February, the artwork and stuff should be pretty much ready by now, judging from the re-release of the 1st4. So, I guess all we can do is ask Happy. I would like a photo cover with inside art work, or a painted over photo cover. If it's Happy holding a scale, I will scream... If it's a monster holding a scale, then it would be OK with me... :) Enough speculation. Any other ideas? Any insight? [hint for Vickie :) ] Angelos 'Atmospherics after dark, noise and voices from the past Across the dial from Moscow to Cologne Interference in the night, thousand miles on either side Stations fading into the unknown...' - Tom Robinson ======================================================================== Subject: Re: Happy's new one Date: Wed, 09 Dec 92 13:08:26 -0500 From: jeffy@syrinx.umd.edu Angelos sez: >Title: Equipoise. Nice one. From webster-on-line: >1. equi.poise \'ek-w*-.po.iz, 'e--kw*-\ n 1: a state of equilibrium 2: >COUNTERBALANCE Is there an echo in here? (okay, okay, I didn't include the pronunciation, and I spent more time speculating on the relationship between the title and Happy's social and political views than I did actually defining the word). But anyway... >Kind of limits the commercial appeal though, since I can't imagine 16 year >olds running to the record store after seeing her breakthrough video on MTV, >and asking for equipoise. a) Is Happy (or KaTe or Jane or ...) really aiming for the 16 year old market? I see their audiences as being much more in the group referred to as "college" or "alternative" or some combination of the two. And I can hardly imagine the title being a deterrent to buying the album. The only exception I can think of is that if it's a word you're _really_ unfamilliar with (I'd never heard it before, though the roots made the basic definition implicit) you're not likely to remember it. The flip side, of course, is that something so odd may just stick in your head anyway. I'm trying to think of some of the weirder album titles I have. AG's _Wisteria_ comes to mind. It's not a word many people use in everyday conversation unless they have a lot of the flowers growing near them. >But then, it brings a new level of sophistication to >her titles. She has a fondness for one word titles, it seems. Kind of like Peter Gabriel, but with more syllables...;-) >My first reaction when I read Martin's post, was 'sounds like a Jean Michel >Jarre title, to me' That hadn't crossed my mind before, but you're right--it *does* sound like a Jean Michel Jarre title! >If it's a monster holding a scale, then it would be OK with me... :) Maybe that way she'd pick up spontaneous purchases from Metallica fans? On an unrelated note, anybody seen the new commercial for the VW...Passat, I think. It features, quite prominently, Clannad's "Theme from Harry's Game." I'm not sure if this is due to renewed interest from _Patriot Games_'s use of the song on the soundtrack, but it's quite pleasant. Certainly a better usage than "Orinoco Flow" in that Crystal Light commercial. Clannad is actually foreground for a good chunk of the commercial. Jeff (who really, really wants to get _Equipoise_ NOW) ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 9 Dec 92 11:31:20 PST From: "John M. Relph" Subject: Re: quantity of quality S.L.Fagg@bnr.co.uk writes: > >How do Ectophiles feel 1992 stacks up against previous years for >quantity of quality music released? And what was the best year you can >remember for great new music releases? Not so great, really. I have noticed that most of what I've been listening to heavily is from 1991 or earlier. But there have been some good albums this year: E A Man Called 'E' They Might Be Giants Apollo 18 Suzanne Vega 99.9 F o Matthew Sweet Girlfriend XTC Nonsvch Talk Talk Laughing Stock Tori Amos Little Earthquakes Joe Satriani The Extremist Cud Asquarius Poi Dog Pondering Volo Volo Peter Gabriel Us Cerebral Corps Attributed To ... Greaves, Cunningham Greaves, Cunningham Brian Eno Nerve Net The Swirlies What To Do About Them Monks of Doom Forgery Bill Nelson Blue Moons & Laughing Guitars XTC Live In Concert Sonic Youth Dirty Birdsongs of the Mesozoic Pyroclastics These are roughly in order of preference. (Technically I believe Talk Talk's "Laughing Stock" was released in 1992, but I didn't really start listening to it until this year.) I really liked E's album. That and "Apollo 18" were definitely my two favorites this year. Matthew Sweet's album has got some good stuff, and some forgettable stuff. The Talk Talk LP took a while before I really started enjoying it, but now it's a favorite. The Swirlies, to their credit AND detriment, managed to capture some of the My Bloody Valentine sound. Cerebral Corps managed to make an interesting and original album while capturing sounds from the 60s and 70s, and they're local. The XTC, Joe Satriani, CUD, Poi Dog Pondering, Peter Gabriel, Monks of Doom, Sonic Youth, and Eno albums didn't live up to the standards of the respective artists' previous releases, in my opinion. I liked those albums, but I was somewhat disappointed by them. Not to say that I didn't think some of the songs weren't good. Au contraire! Parts of "Nonsvch" are excellent, for example, "That Wave" and "Then She Appeared" are both sonic wonders. A few songs on the Poi Dog LP are hard-hitting, danceable and spontaneous. Eno worked up some good grooves, as did Joe Satriani. Peter Gabriel was Peter Gabriel, and Sonic Youth were Sonic Youth. CUD's strengths seemed to be in the songs which were released as singles before the album came out, save one or two ("Magic Alex" comes to mind). The Monks of Doom calmed down a bit, but they did manage to come up with a magical instrumental, "Tanguedia (for Astor Piazzolla)". The "Greaves, Cunningham" album, by John Greaves and David Cunningham, surprised me. It showed a strong consistency in theme and style, and was surprisingly listenable considering the background of the artists. Unfortunately it appears to be available only on Japanese CD. Honorable Mention for 1992: Shonen Knife's "712". -- John ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 09 Dec 92 14:33:19 CST From: Powdered walking toast man Subject: The poise that refreshes? For openers, let me confirm Steve F's supposition that the 'oi' in "Equipoise" is pronounced the same in the American language as it is in the English one--just like the "eu" in the name of the eminent 19th cen- tury psychoanalyst, Eugen Bleuler. (Klaus, who brought the whole thing up in the first place, will probably be able to make sense of the last remark. No, I'm not insinuating that anyone on ecto would profit from doing time on the couch :-).) For some unknown reason (arguably the modal causal factor for these sorts of things with me :-) ), this discussion of the apparent title for the Sixthone (having arrived on Earth too late to qualify for a place in the Firstfive :-) ) reminds me that years ago, Woody Allen made a movie which he was going to call "Anhedonia" (shrinkspeak for the inability to feel pleasure [ah there, Eugen Bleuler :-)]), until the studio concluded that such title was too inaccessable for the mass market, and changed it. The picture went on to fame and fortune under the name of Annie Hall. Then again, maybe a slightly obscurantist title would be helpful in channel- ing the recording to the class market, as distinct from the mass market--an outcome which many of us would define as desirable, were it not for the potential negative impact on Happy's annual income. On the other hand, if dumbing-down is a prerequisite for megabuck sales figures, one may almost almost be tempted to ask, "what price money?" I suppose it all depends on whether you're breaking even in the first place :-). Be all that as it may, the notion of making the album more psychologically accessible to people who listen to college radio than to people who are partial to a steady diet of what, for want of any better term, I shall here and now coin the neologism "high school radio" has a certain appeal to it, at least it does to me. If, on the other hand, they decide that "Equipoise" is not the optimal title, they could always take note of the movie _Koyanisqaatsi_--Hopi for "life out of balance"--and look up the antonym for that word in the Hopi language. Whatever it is, I'm sure it would make a dandy conversation piece as album titles go. The most farfetched sequella I can think of to calling the album "Equipoise" is that if the cover graphics emphasize the "oi" in just the right way, it could attract purchasers in the UK from among the ranks of those devotees of the so-called Oi genre of punk rock who are sufficiently naive to think that one has anything to to with the other. The latent function of this scenario, of course, is that if enough disillusioned oi music fans unload their discs and tapes on used record stores throughout the Isles to bring Happy's music within the reach of practically any pocketbook :-). MEANWHILE, BACK IN THE WORLD OF REALITY... By way of reassuring everyone that I don't have all the answers: Who's Jean Michel Jarre, anyway? While puttering around in the menu of newsgroups yesterday, I discovered a newsgroup yclept alt.fan.meredith-tanner. The most notable feature was a post from MT herself, flaming back an earlier post which had flamed her. Which brings me to my next question: Who`s Meredith Tanner, anyway? (I have run this question by the aforesaid newsgroup, but am raising it again here in the hope of getting a substantive answer before the flames from the regulars on the newsgroup start rolling in :-).) Last Saturday afternoon, WBEZ broadcast the premiere of Stuart Rosenberg's second eclectic music program for them, _Stu Until 2_. It seems to me that this is something Happy's publicity mill should know about, as it would be an ideal outlet for _Equipoise_ (and the 1st5, for that matter), as would be several other BEZ shows, as well as _The Midnight Special_ on WFMT. Mitch ======================================================================== The ecto archives are on hardees.rutgers.edu in ~ftp/pub/hr. There is an INDEX file explaining what is where. Feel free to send me things you'd like to have added. -- jessica (jessica@ns1.rutgers.edu)