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 #491 ecto, Number 491 Wednesday, 17 March 1993 Today's Topics: *-----------------* Re: What a weekend still closer Happy Quotes.. HaPpY Birthdays Snow Job Field of Dreams... I Don't Think It's That Simple About an CD order, and some replys Re: Hamlet Gaffe Blizzards Recommendations Voyager, shamrocks, and hockey closer or farther? Part I of my review of Equipoise: Very General Musings Closer Voyager, shamrocks, and hockey ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 2:42:48 EST From: Greg Bossert Subject: Re: What a weekend i should be getting to bed, but the thread about Closer and Hamlet has knotted itself about my attention, and rather than untie it i will sever it with a few quick slices: Zefferelli's version of Hamlet has some extraordinary elements, in particular the performances of Mel Gibson, Iam Holmes, and Alan Bates, with a good effort in a difficult part from Helen Bonham-Carter, and nothing dreadful from Glenn Close (it *is* a tough part -- alas, *most* of Bill the Bard's female characters are difficult to play with any hope of consistency of character -- however, i was not overwhelmed by Ms. Close's performance in the film). i confess, however, a great fondness for Laurence Olivier's version, which i highly recommend. i must say that i thought Mr. Gibson's performance fully able to stand up against Sir Larry's, no small praise from this footah, and several of the most difficult scenes, like the play and the confrontation at the graveside, not to mention the deadly soliloquies, come off perfectly... but Olivier's sense of humour is better (dig the goofiness of the challenge to the duel, placed just perfectly to loosen us up for the big bang ending). plus, Olivier gets to lurk about at the edge of gorgeous grey vistas and do his best Sting impersonation... not that i intend to slight Mr. Zefferelli -- his version of Romeo and Juliet is without doubt my favorite Shakespearean adaption. go rent 'em all right now! throw in Kurosawa's Throne of Blood and Polanski's Macbeth, while you are at it, and Prospero's Books -- too bad old Will isn't collecting residuals, eh? some snappy footahized quote from one of those deadly soliloquies demolished to make room for something closer to my heart: over hill, over dale, thorough bush, thorough brier, over park, over pale, thorough flood, thorough fire i do wander everywhere, swifter than the moon's sphere and i serve her fairy queen, to dew her orbs upon the green. the cowlsips tall, her pensioners be in their gold coats, spots you see: those be rubies, fairy favors; in those freckles live their savours i must go seek some dewdrops here and hang a pearl in every cowslip's ear farewell thou lob of spirits, i'll be gone our queen and all her elves come here anon would that i could, i'd be serving my Titania would that i could, i'd never return... -greg -- bossert@vizlab.rutgers.edu -- == i have never been afraid to change == Happy == the circumstances of the world == Rhodes ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 03:19:02 EST From: jessica@maurolycus.rutgers.edu (jessica) Subject: still closer Hmm some more. Vickie, you say you do know what the song is about, but you won't say (unless happy says it is ok to do so). I've thought about it some more, and I've decided that not only is the song about alcoholism *for*me*, but that I seriously think that this is what the song is about. I kept thinking that Happy's dad was an alcoholic, and that this song was about that, about it's affects on her. But i wasn't *sure* about that, and noone else had volunteered this interpretation, so I thought I could be wrong, or maybe it was something i did know but wasn't meant to make public :) But I honestly couldn't remember for sure, it *felt* to me like i had this knowledge that Happy's dad was an alcoholic from things written on ecto, but it seemed possible to me that vickie had told me personally, or even happy, for all i know with my silly near-non-existant memory :) So I looked through old digests.. And indeed, in the ECHOES interview, Happy talks about this briefly. She said, about her childhood: "Broken is putting it lightly. Broken, strange --- well yeah, my mother 'n' father divorced -- that was like not a big deal. A lot of kids can handle that. After that my father remarried to a woman who turned out to be my nemesis and I did not have a good childhood because of it. And then my father became an alcoholic and a lot of different things happened." "I moved away from them at a certain time to go live with my mother who was up in the Albany area and certain people that she was remarried to I had a hard time with. It was an extremely troubled and unsafe, chaotic childhood." I'm pretty sure I knew this before then, but I can't remember how. Anyway, it seems hard for me to think there could be a different meaning to the song, since it fits so powerfully and accurately, for me, to this one. But, Vickie, what do you say? Has anyone come close to figuring this one out? jessica ======================================================================== From: Steve Fagg Subject: Re: What a weekend Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 13:14:58 BST On Wed, 17 Mar 93 at 0:33:35 EST, WretchAwry wrote: > Thank you Jeff-with-the-long-black-hair, for the synopsis of Hamlet. > So where does Ophelia fit into it? She's Hamlet's sister. > Are there 3 witches somewhere, or is > that Macbeth? Yes, that's Macbeth. In my opinion one of the easiest Shakespeare plays to enjoy if you're not a cognoscente. For a start it's quite short (Hamlet by contrast is rather long: the RSC's recent production, with Kenneth Branagh as the prince, used the full text and ran some 4.5 hours). And secondly it's got a brilliant story line which can be appreciated as an exciting thriller (as long as the language doesn't bug you). It's also got some great characters (the witches, Lady M., the porter, MacDuff's son) and probably the greatest density of brilliant quotes of any of the plays. > (Which I know nothing about too. I feel so culturally > deprived.) (Watched _Educating Rita_ the other night. I loved her line > after seeing Macbeth..."Wasn't his wife a *COW*!!" I'm about where Rita > was at the beginning of the film. Except that I've never read any Rita > Mae Browne. Thank goodness, I think. What a wonderful film!) Too right. For once, a film based on a great stage play that works not only as a film in its own right but also as a film of the play. The play is two-hander set entirely in Frank's study, all the other scenes are related by Frank or Rita as appropriate and so take on a slightly unreal air compared to their exchanges in the study. The film (IMO) opened out the play in just the right sort of way and is almost every bit as rewarding. See it live if you get the chance though. And, yes, I too just *LOVE* the "cow" line! And as for "Do it on the radio!", that must be one of the best lines ever! After seeing the National Theatre's production of Peer Gynt a few years ago I can only say I wish they'd taken Rita's advice! -- 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". *** ======================================================================== From: brianb@lobby.ti.com (Brian Bloom) Subject: Happy Quotes.. Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 9:18:20 CST Okay... okay.. You guys have finally *made* me break down and add my favorite Happy quote to my .sig: Says so *much* about me.... -- __ ____ __ ____ __ __ (__==__) /\ \ / \_\ / /\ / \ \ / |\ / /\ (oo) ( moo.) / \_\ / /\ |_| / / /| /\ \ \ / ||/ / / /-------\/ -' / /\ | |\ \/ /_/_ / / / \ \/ \ \ / |/ / / / | U.T.|| / \/ |_| \ __ \_\ /_/ / \ /\ \_\ / /| / / * ||----|| / /\ ./_/ \ \ \/_/_\_\/ \ \ \/_// / | / / ^^ ^^ \ \/ |_| \ \_\ /_/\ \ \_\ /_/ /|_/ / Br!an Bloom \__/_/ \/_/ \_\/ \/_/ \_\/ \_\/ brianb@lobby.ti.com .. and music hides me so well, ..and reveals me.. oh well... - HR ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 15:53:21 +0000 From: Terry Partis Subject: HaPpY Birthdays Here's wishing Happy Birthdays to Barry Wong and Graham Dombkins on March 19th. Have a great day folks Peace Terry =============================================================================== _ __ Jolly Hockeysticks _ __ / `-' ( ,,, / `-' ( ,,, | I I ||||||[:::] | I I ||||||[:::] \_.-._( ''' Terry (Tel Boy) Partis \_.-._( ''' _ __ (tgp@ukc.ac.uk) _ __ / `-' ( ,,, With a smile and a song / `-' ( ,,, | I I ||||||[:::] I'm HaPpY | I I ||||||[:::] \_.-._( ''' \_.-._( ''' Let me sleep awhile and dream of Avalon and the Beltane fires.................. ...........................................our souls entwined for all eternity. ================================================================================ ======================================================================== Date: 17 Mar 93 10:52:45 EST From: Mike Mendelson Subject: Snow Job Alan quotes me: > | But there was also an honesty, a baring, a stripping > | away, a fantastical journeyesque motif, and at bottom, a fundamental > | self-mockery and flippant ridicule often reminiscent of Seinfeld. > > beautiful!! :-) Yeah, talk about pretentious! :-) :-) :-) -mjm ======================================================================== Date: 17 Mar 1993 11:00:03 -0500 (EST) From: SANDOVAL@stsci.edu Subject: Field of Dreams... Hello everyone! Well, I must say that snow is fun for awhile, but it gets REAL old! I mean I was living in San Diego until 6 months ago and this is a HUGE amount of snow for me... Of course, it's all relative... :) I wanted to comment about "Field of Dreams", since everyone else has been commenting on "Hamlet" (which I liked). FOD isn't the "best" film I've ever seen (That's "Citizen Kane"). But no movie has EVER moved me as much as FOD. Sure, it was sappy and sentimental. But, I would give ANYTHING for the chance to play baseball. It's my greatest love in life (besides my wife, of course :). And the thought that when I die, I'll have a chance to play, well, it brings tears to my eyes... The first time I saw the film I cried for the last 1/2 hour and I couldn't talk about it until the next day. It was just too emotional for me. I should say that it has special meaning to my life, but I'm not going to go into that now. Suffice to say that I can relate to Ray Kinsella. I still cry and get goosebumps when I watch it... So, I highly recommend the film. If you take it as pure fantasy, and think about the dreams YOU wish you could attain, the things YOU wish you could do over again (not just baseball, but anything), then I think you'll like it. And Vicki, if you see it, think of the story I e-mailed you. My Equipose feelings will be coming shortly. I want to take one more listen, then I'll comment. John ======================================================================== Date: 17 Mar 93 11:38:51 EST From: Mike Mendelson Subject: I Don't Think It's That Simple Satan says, after an involved dictionarial rendering regarding the English word 'pretentious': > Happy is not pretentious. She does not drop inappropriate > intellectualisms into her songs; she does not attempt projects beyond > her ability. She is not showy; she is honest and quite straightforward. Well, Luke, you're going to get yourself into trouble here. Let me say first that I am not really trying to *defend* Alan's position as to state my own, which may well overlap with Alan's some. You complete the double dip as follows: > The Indigo Girls are quite pretentious. They drop those ii's all the > time; I just want to vomit at some of their lyrics. They attempt to be > folksy, twangy, and brainy at the same time and fail embarrassingly, > IMHO. Of course, the main reason I dislike them is because I find their > music indescribably irritating and obnoxious. I speak not from > inexperience, I might add; anyone interested in buying a copy of "Nomads > Indians Saints" on cassette, played maybe 3 times and only once all the > way through, should E-mail me. Well, as many people have defended some 10KM stuff, I feel it my musical duty to shed a brighter light on Amy and Emily from Athens, aka TIG. I like TIG a whole lot; in fact, I find them downright inspired and inspiring sometimes. Their first (eponymous) major release is up there in my list of excellent albums, both for aesthetics and consistency (the only song I still gag on is Land of Canaan, much the way I still gag on KT's ExpIV). Putting that aside, what gives you the right to judge whether they aren't really just telling it the way they see it? How can you deem their intellectualisms, as you call them, inappropriate? Sure, you are entitled to your opinion, but what is pretention to one is insight to another. When I think of pretentiousness with regard to something like the Story song about the black guy that gets paralyzed because of apartheid, what do I mean? I suppose I mean that here they are taking a somewhat clicheed, somewhat sensational instance of racism (I in no way mean to devalue the importance of racism here) and use it to evoke some pathos or ethos in the listener. You're right if you say "well, this is their own experience and it's real and important to them, so that's what they're singing about." But my point is that they expand this isolated story into a cause, into a symbol, into a foil for the evils in the world. There is a dose of hyberbole in play here. And as I said originally a few days ago, and as Alan repeated, this type of pretention is virtually unavoidable when you are writing songs, and you want to impart some theme on your listener and achieve something meaningful to yourself. Happy Rhodes elevates her life experience to a wider level as well. Is it pretentious? Well, no more or less pretentious, I think, that lots of other songwriters. Now, if the Indigo Girls sing a song about how graduating from and being in College is a metaphor for life (Closer to Fine), and they have never been to college, but they are making it sound like they have and have injected all this importance and inference into the experience, one might argue, yes, this is pretentious. But don't you think that when they write about springtime in the south, that they have been there and really mean it? Similarly, the Storm takes one indirect experience with racism, and in a sense make claims about all racism and the evils of the world in general (implicitly). Pretentious? Sure. Allowable? Why not? Tolerable? Heck, it's a song, and if it works for them, then sure. It doesn't make me any more nauseous than Kate Bush singing about nuclear war or dead soldiers. > My point here is that addressing philosophical or weighty topics does > not make one pretentious. Addressing them from a position of ignorance > or inadequacy does. How do you judge whether an artist is *qualified* to address a topic? This is utter nonsense. If I want to write a song about Chinese pole-vaulting, am I being pretentious? Was Kate Bush in Vietnam? Is she a Buddhist? I don't find Pulling Out The Pin pretentious. > Sorry for the flame, and again, nothing personal. It's just time the > record was set straight. I'll say. The real point here is trivial. Some things work for you, others don't. I'm just not sure how much attention the pretention level merits. -mjm ======================================================================== Subject: Re: What a weekend Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 12:33:33 -0500 From: jeffy@syrinx.umd.edu Vickie asked: >On Wed, 17 Mar 93 at 0:33:35 EST, WretchAwry wrote: >> Thank you Jeff-with-the-long-black-hair, for the synopsis of Hamlet. >> So where does Ophelia fit into it? And before I could respond, Steve Fagg gaffed: >She's Hamlet's sister. Bzzzt. I don't remember any Shakespeare play with incest as a subject... Ophelia is the daughter of a nobleman in the Court of Denmark (I don't recall the character's name; it's been 2 or 3 years since I've read the play!). She is ostensibly Hamlet's girlfriend/intended, though he pretty much insults the hell out of her, drives her crazy, and then gets upset when she kills herself. Hey nonny, hey. One might recognize the famous quote "Get thee to a nunnery," which is Hamlet speaking to Ophelia (and referring to a brothel, not a convent). >Yes, that's Macbeth. In my opinion one of the easiest Shakespeare >plays to enjoy if you're not a cognoscente. Actually, I think I'd probably recommend _The Tempest_. Perhaps I'm biased in that it's the play that really first interested me in Shakespeare (which lead me to a series of courses on both Shakespeare and other Elizabethan dramatists in college) >appreciated as an exciting thriller (as long as the language doesn't >bug you). Unfortunately, the language (and constant need to check footnotes) is often troubling to 'newcomers'. And there's a nasty little trade-off between watching and reading--the movements/expressions of the actors conveys a lot, but the dialog often goes by so quickly that one doesn't get a grasp of what's being said. And of course, folks should definitely check out _A Midsummer Night's Dream_ which is a classic Shakespearean comedy, with all the typical elements.. Jeff ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 18:54:06 +0100 From: yngveh@stud.cs.uit.no (Yngve Hauge) Subject: About an CD order, and some replys alanm sighs : >sick o' snow Yeah you said something there. Here in Tromsoe it has been snowing about eight meters this winter and almost all of it has rained away :( It snows about two meters then it starts to rain for some days till almost all is gone then it starts to snow again :( I'm really sick of it. >Oh, and a while ago, one or more of the Australian Ectophiles were saying >how much they'd rather have a day of our weather than one of theirs during >their hothothot spell. Right about now, I'd take 'em up on the trade. I would like some sun please :) I'm trying to remember last time I saw it :( Somewhat about CD-singles : Mostly I do not buy them but when I run into some interesting compilations then I might buy it just to hear what it is all about. But I would rather see the songs as bonus-tracks on an album. You just don't get the whole feeling of the music.......... My Happy Rhodes CD-order has become quite big after I got so good responses on her music that I decided I had to get someone to offer some of the most fanatic ones :) *laugh* 2 complet sets of albums + 5 sets of her two last ones are quite expensive. I'm glad I only am going to pay for one of the complete ones. But I will pay much to get her into the music-shops here in Norway. My first goal is to send a tape and some info to local radio stations around in Norway. I guess as far as I know this far I can get some airplay in Oslo, in my hometown Molde and here in Tromsoe but that will only be a start. Newspapers might be interested in Happy Rhodes/ The Ecto as well.....I'll see what I can do (I got school too :( ) ======================================================================== From: Steve Fagg Subject: Re: Hamlet Gaffe Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 18:13:13 BST Well, I guess that's what I get for writing off the top of my head about a play I've nevcer read and only seen performed twice! And it's so damned long you can't be expected to remember all the details. :-) I will henceforward answer to the name os "Mr. Shakespeare Dunce". I don't suppose I could plead that I was confused by having recently re-read John Ford's "'Tis Pity She's a Whore" which *IS* about incest? No, I thought not. -- 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". *** ======================================================================== From: brianb@lobby.ti.com (Brian Bloom) Subject: Blizzards Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 12:42:08 CST Blizzards? You guys have been having blizzards? Gosh, here in Dallas I would've changed into shorts if I could have been allowed to wear them to work. As I was I just had to sweat profusely. ;) Hey, I wanted to get some feedback on which Happy album to get next. I only have Warpaint so far, and don't know whether to work forward or backwards. My Fave trax are: Wrong Century In Hiding Phobos any recommendations? Equipoise or older? -- __ ____ __ ____ __ __ (__==__) /\ \ / \_\ / /\ / \ \ / |\ / /\ (oo) ( moo.) / \_\ / /\ |_| / / /| /\ \ \ / ||/ / / /-------\/ -' / /\ | |\ \/ /_/_ / / / \ \/ \ \ / |/ / / / | U.T.|| / \/ |_| \ __ \_\ /_/ / \ /\ \_\ / /| / / * ||----|| / /\ ./_/ \ \ \/_/_\_\/ \ \ \/_// / | / / ^^ ^^ \ \/ |_| \ \_\ /_/\ \ \_\ /_/ /|_/ / Br!an Bloom \__/_/ \/_/ \_\/ \/_/ \_\/ \_\/ brianb@lobby.ti.com .. and music hides me so well, ..and reveals me.. oh well - HR ======================================================================== Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 10:55:36 -0800 From: Michael G Peskura Subject: Recommendations Brian, IMHO, " I'd buy Ecto " :) ======================================================================== From: rjk1@cec1.wustl.edu (Bob Kollmeyer) Date: Wed, 17 Mar 1993 13:18:41 -0600 Subject: Voyager, shamrocks, and hockey Just thought I'd note that this past weekend while wandering around Bizmart (a chain of office supply superstores) after picking up a keyboard extention cord (I finally got sick of not being able to set the keyboard on my lap while I lean back and enjoy what seem to be an increasing number of hours of reading...), something in the software section caught my eye. Now available for IBM-type people with CD-ROM drives is... The Voyager Disc. Perusing the back of the box, it claims to have all of the information that went along on Voyager's disk. Music, pictures, etc. Don't know if the disc is gold-colored or not. 8) And as long as I'm here, and since the timing is appropriate (due for the most part to my forgetfulness), I thought I'd enquire as to whether or not anyone here is familiar with the "Thistle and Shamrock" show. I heard it once about 2 months ago while traveling through central Missouri. From what I could gather from the ~30 minutes that I was able to receive the show, it is a syndicated show of Celtic music. Caught my ear and I was wondering if anyone could supply more info... Finally, even though Jeff beat me to the punch, I'd have to cast my vote for Hockey as _the_ winter song. It can send me to the closet for a big fuzzy brown (drat. gotta get a blue one) blanket in the heart of summer. All due respect to the goddess, but this one melts Under Ice (which, don't get me wrong, is wonderful). All in MHO, of course. I can't think of another song that can trigger so many senses and mental images. I can feel and smell the cold. I can see and hear everyone around the pond (okay, for me it was a pond, not a river) and sense (its more than just seeing) the strange color that covers both the sky and snow when night begins to come long before it is wanted. Hockey's music and lyrics just _couldn't_ be any more effective. Hmmm. Perhaps if I went out into my cornfield, dug a pit and filled it with water... "They will come"... Nah. bob ======================================================================== Subject: closer or farther? Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 11:33:33 PST From: "Gary Nichols" OK, I'll stop lurking for a bit, but only a little bit... Vickie writes: >................................................ I *know* what "Closer" >is about, but I have no idea what Hamlet is about. > >(And no, I'm sorry, but I can't tell what I know. If Happy wants to >tell the story, or gives me the ok to tell it someday, then you'll >know. Otherwise, hints here and there, such as her passing on the >Hamlet reference, are all I can offer.) > >Vickie (Vickie: If I guessed, would you tell?) I'll apologize now for anything stupid I'm about to say.... My impression of "Closer" is that it is a song about oppression within a relationship. The source of oppression is the partner in that relationship. As stated before by another poster, "the open door" is what she's getting closer to - leaving the relationship. The song is full of anger directed toward the oppressor. The oppressor is the *real mystery* to me. I think I have decided that this song is *really* about ALL those who have oppressed her, or repressed her, in her life! The song is like a movie in the way it plays out to me, but I think there are multiple meanings in every line. As often occurs when a plot is written, it becomes a parable... The plot of the movie is: a girl starts a relationship with a guy, who turns out to be a real jerk, takes her out of a family environment where she has support, turns her against her parents and beats her whenever things don't go right in his life.... (I'm using jessica's transcription of the lyrics here....Thanks, jessica, for the transcription and the alcoholism connection!) [my interpretations follow each line, sometimes multiple interpretations] I was born with a penchant for sadness/Now I can finally speak of the madness [blames self for getting into relationship/ I'm just now able to tell my story] Oh you took from me my safety net/Killed my hopes and made me your pet [relationship puts her into new environment/ he molds her into his ideal] I believed it could only get better/But your ignorance loomed like the weather [always optimistic/ but realistically could see all along what a jerk he was] Oh you made breathing a nasty chore/I ate your malice for ten years more [afraid to breath for fear of retribution/ relationship lasted 10 years] I was crushed in the vice of your sickness/Took the blows for your every weakness [sickness=alcoholism or psychological prob/ guy took out all his troubles by beating her] Oh you forbade me to love my mom/Daddy begged me to keep things calm [guy turned her against her parents/ father tried to help by telling her "not to rock the boat" (bad advice)] [...gets harder to follow plot after this, seems to be a context shift...] All the fears of the babes lay upon me/Every word volunteered for my army [babes could be kids from the relationship or just childlike fears of her own/ music writing as a release?] Oh sticks and stones thrown Shattered my bones/I glued them back with rhythms and tones [again, music writing as an escape from the harsh reality of the abuse situation?] Reaching out for the ones who could save me/Nervous pats on the head's all they gave me ["the ones who could save me"=her parents for moral support? her fans for support? recording companies for contracts? her musical heroes who failed to recognize her?/ but she was only patronized by these authority figures] Oh where were you all when I was jailed/I cried and pleaded, to no avail [whoever it was that was supposed to save her didn't when she really needed them. jailed? for fighting back against the abuse? or just a metaphor for being trapped in the situation?] Chorus: I'm getting closer, getting closer than I was before Closer, getting closer to the open door much closer than before... And in the singing at the end I hear: You can't hold me, You won't have me any more [she's outa here!] I can see my life - It's mine!!! [she's taking charge of her life!!] I don't know anything about Happy's relationships with her parents or other people before Kevin... As I said before, I think that the real oppressor is a conglomeration of all those who have oppressed her in the past, including parents, someone in a relationship, fans, record companies, musical heroes, herself (her penchant for sadness, also one can forbid oneself from loving one's mother, `blows' can be metaphorical, etc....) Please feel free to blow huge holes in this line of thinking.... My chest is bare and waiting for your stakes.... (Vickie, any of these ramblings fit into what you know?) ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ Gary Nichols ~ ...but my dreams ~ ~ Hewlett-Packard STD/GSL, M/S R5EF ~ (what are your dreams?) ~ ~ 8020 Foothills Blvd. ~ are my reality. ~ ~ Roseville, CA 95678 ~ (I don't believe you) ~ ~ email: garyn@hprpcd.rose.hp.com ~ My dreams (what are your dreams?) ~ ~ voice: (916) 785-5333 ~ are real. (it can't be so...) ~ ~ ~ Happy Rhodes, "Dreams Are" ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ ======================================================================== From: "Michael Blackmore" Date: 17 Mar 93 14:56:57 EST Subject: Part I of my review of Equipoise: Very General Musings Hello Folks, (I know this is a long time after everyone else, but, hey, it takes me a bunch of playing to really get an album!) I find that it takes more a serious listen from me, so I'm going to break this review up over a few days. Doing a general overview today, and then a few songs a day for the rest of the week. Then everyone will have plenty of time to flame me for the incorrectness and simplicity of my point of view ;-) These are just my initial thoughts from when I first was struck by things. Actual analysis and interpretations will be in following posts. Songs that stay in my head the most: Save Our Souls - The chorus of just lingers in my mind a lot. I definitely felt it to be ironic but especially good because it plays upon an all too human traits of expecting the "god from the machine" (I forget the latin term) to rescue us from ourselves. The topic of the song also reminded me of the wretched song by either the Carpenters or Captain and Tennelli (sp.) Calling Occupants of Interplanetary Craft; and the good song by Nina Hagen Flying Saucer He Will Come - The first thing that flashed into my mind when I heard this song images of women throughout the ages waiting by the window for men off in wars to return. (Also parts of the chorus reminded me of the chorus from He's Alive) Other songs that stuck me for initial sticking-in-my-headness: Closer, Flight, Temporal and Eternal. Overall I found the album to definitely be subtler than Warpaint (the first one I heard thus most of my initial Happy-views). I'd contrast the two as the difference between someone talking loudly and forcefully from a lecture podium that you remember instantly (Warpaint) and someone approaching you softly at a party and whispering very softly things that you remember for days, but it doesn't really hit you how significant what was being said is at first (Equipoise). Next Installment: The first four songs of Equipoise.*************************MICHAEL BLACKMORE************************** "You seem to be deluding yourself that this is a school with a bureaucracy, when actually it's a bureaucracy with a school." - Michael B (michaelb@ksgrsch.harvard.edu) ***************A TRADITIONAL OF EXCELLENCE SINCE 1963*************** ======================================================================== Subject: Closer Date: Wed, 17 Mar 93 14:57:47 EST From: Angelos Kyrlidis Hi, Wow! I am really enjoying the discussion on the meaning of 'Closer', and find it very interesting. This is not about taking sides, but I agree more with Jessica's interpretation. Addictions of all sorts can be more restrictive than abusive relationships...Mainly because the abuser is one's self. And this fits in with the duality theme of Equipoise, since it's about a battle within. All this IMHO. Keep up the discussions!!! Angelos 'The world we knew busted open wide in the winter of '79'-TRB ======================================================================== From: rjk1@cec1.wustl.edu (Bob Kollmeyer) Date: Wed, 17 Mar 1993 13:18:41 -0600 Subject: Voyager, shamrocks, and hockey Just thought I'd note that this past weekend while wandering around Bizmart (a chain of office supply superstores) after picking up a keyboard extention cord (I finally got sick of not being able to set the keyboard on my lap while I lean back and enjoy what seem to be an increasing number of hours of reading...), something in the software section caught my eye. Now available for IBM-type people with CD-ROM drives is... The Voyager Disc. Perusing the back of the box, it claims to have all of the information that went along on Voyager's disk. Music, pictures, etc. Don't know if the disc is gold-colored or not. 8) And as long as I'm here, and since the timing is appropriate (due for the most part to my forgetfulness), I thought I'd enquire as to whether or not anyone here is familiar with the "Thistle and Shamrock" show. I heard it once about 2 months ago while traveling through central Missouri. From what I could gather from the ~30 minutes that I was able to receive the show, it is a syndicated show of Celtic music. Caught my ear and I was wondering if anyone could supply more info... Finally, even though Jeff beat me to the punch, I'd have to cast my vote for Hockey as _the_ winter song. It can send me to the closet for a big fuzzy brown (drat. gotta get a blue one) blanket in the heart of summer. All due respect to the goddess, but this one melts Under Ice (which, don't get me wrong, is wonderful). All in MHO, of course. I can't think of another song that can trigger so many senses and mental images. I can feel and smell the cold. I can see and hear everyone around the pond (okay, for me it was a pond, not a river) and sense (its more than just seeing) the strange color that covers both the sky and snow when night begins to come long before it is wanted. Hockey's music and lyrics just _couldn't_ be any more effective. Hmmm. Perhaps if I went out into my cornfield, dug a pit and filled it with water... "They will come"... Nah. bob ======================================================================== 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)