From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V4 #82 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Thursday, March 12 1998 Volume 04 : Number 082 Today's Subjects: ----------------- music from japan [Greg Bossert ] Jayne/Jill [Steve Molla ] Re: Holly Cole! [Jeff Wasilko ] Re: chronic exhalations (off topic) [meredith ] Re: Jayne/Jill [wojs of mass destruction ] news on Kate Bush tribute album [meredith ] kim fox [wojs of mass destruction ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 20:05:57 -0800 From: Greg Bossert Subject: music from japan i'm just back from a business trip to japan, with a few albums in hand: bonnie pink _heaven's kitchen_: caught the end of a video, dithered over whether or not to buy it, and it's a good thing i did -- this may be my happiest cd purchase of the last year... words and music by ms. pink -- whose epochromatic hair caught my attention in the video -- in japanese and english (she's japanese, if it wasn't clear). instruments and production by tore johansson, recorded at tambourine studios in malmo, sweden -- tore is perhaps best known as the producer of the cardigans. mr. johansson and his vibrafon label has worked with other japanese artists (anyone know anything about hideki kaji?) bonnie's voice is strong, warm, and elastic, with an oddly american twang even when singing in japanese. reminds me occasionally of a throaty aimee mann, and sometimes of an un-screechy t.a.f.k.a.prince, but her sound is not derivative. the songs are insidiously clever, beatle-y pop, with a gentle groove (aimee mann is again a good comparison, though ms. pink seems a bit less edgy). instrumentation (largely from mr. johansson, with a variety of swedish backing musicians) is sort of slyly perky: a few horns, some electric piano, a hint of 60s-retro. the album has none of the sugar-pop excesses of the j-pop idol phenomenon. bonnie is either a brilliant lyricist or a bit confused about her english, or perhaps both ;) some examples: on a dining table there's a book you're reading now there's a green, good partner when you're sick on a brown shelf there's a mad smiling cat floating in the bottom of siesta (i *love* that verse -- like a pink-haired wallace stevens) even if i am smaller than lemon even if i am nothing like a darkness i can sing to the sky there's a kina innocence left i'm sure it'll never betray me cuz it's blue as much as your eyes, yeah! if you just can't get into song-oriented pop, you probably will be unispired by this album; but if (like many here) you like *good* pop, i suspect you'll eat this one up (i've got it pretty much on repeat ;)... alas, the album may be hard to find, though bonnie's first release, _blue jam_, is available through various web outlets (anyone heard this?). she has a new album due out soon... UA _11_: another purchase inspired by a video. another japanese female singer who avoids the squeaky-perk of the average j-pop idol. a bit hipper-hoppy/more trendy than bonnie pink, maybe a bit less infectious to my ears (though if this album wasn't in japanese, i suspect it'd be huge in the uk...) the vocals (alas, i can't find the woman's name in latin letters, i *think* UA refers to the group, though her's is the only picture in evidence on the album and web site) are warm, a bit loungy, a touch of cardigans (hmm, the swedish/japanese connection again...) but mellower. the instrumental tracks feature more sly horns, a lot of drum machines and interesting synths, some light, lounge/brazilianesque rythms. occasionally reminds me of portishead. this one is growing on me (i'm listening now and really enjoying it) -- i'm certainly looking for some of the other 10 releases mentioned at . i wish i had bought _fine feathers make fine birds_, which features covers "because the night", "somebody to love", and "i feel the earth muve". interesingly, UA produces a track on bonnie pink's _blue jam_ another one that will be hard to find, i think... buffalo daughter: _new rock_ according to the web site at , buffalo daughter has actually registered the trademark "pioneer in sounding", which just about sums up the bizarre fascination with american pop culture i found in japan -- the bizarre part being that their perception of our culture, down to the grammer and spelling, is wildly inaccurate. the number one male group in japan right now is "glay", named because, in their words, "our music is neither black or white". it's not the phonemic confusion that surprises me, it's that i saw about a million posters, tee-shirts, caps, and tv spots and no one ever mentioned the misspelling... er, anyway, buffalo daughter is better known here, due to the unexpected success of the compilation album _captain vapour athletes_ (other album/ep titles: _shaggy head dressers_ and _socks, drugs and rock 'n roll _ ;) _new rock_ seems to follow in the trend of earlier work, though seems to be considered the best yet by the japanese press. this is the farthest of the three from ecto-norm -- it's sort of a downtown grunge techno (i'm sure that someone from nyc would know the official dj term for this sound.) occasional female vocals, often spoken, in english and japanese, plus samples from tv, phone conversations, etc. i'm get bored pretty quick with the general genre (heh) of electronic dance-oriented music, but this album has got a lot of texture, plus real drums and guitars. it's surprisingly musical. this is the side of japanese pop farthest from the idol phenomenon -- startling, culturally ambiguous, much riskier to my ears than the us/uk equivalents. i'd listen to this before buying it, but i'd definitely listen to it... ;) if you extended the line from the (deeply goofy) group "speed", the number one female idol group in japan with the (deeply aweful) hit "my graduation", to buffalo daughter, and then extend it another few miles, you might hit the boredoms -- which is less a group as it is a sonic car accident. female drummer yoshimi (say it out loud, accent on the yo! ;) has a bunch of side projects: if anyone has recordings of her "Pink Sabbath -- It's a pink (sexy), cover band of Black Sabbath" or OOIOO (the japan times says "sounds like Kate Bush polishing her teeth with a chainsaw"), let me know! sorry for the length of the post -- it's been a bit since i've been excited about something that wasn't 'ethnic' folk music... if anyone gets any of these artists, let me know what you think! footah-san! - -- greg bossert 650-933-6431 -- - -- gwis, silicon graphics, inc. bossert@sgi.com -- - -- i have never been afraid to change -- Happy -- - -- the circumstances of the world -- Rhodes -- ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 11:49:53 -0800 From: Steve Molla Subject: Jayne/Jill I noticed that someone posted the appearance of Jayne Sachs and Jill Sobule at Bogart's in Cincinnati for the show on March 18th. I'm definitely planning on going based on Jayne's appearance alone, but I don't know much about Jill's music. I'm sure there are some big fans out there. Can anyone tell me what her style is like? Thanks! Steve ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 11 Mar 1998 23:58:13 -0500 From: Jeff Wasilko Subject: Re: Holly Cole! On Wed, Mar 11, 1998 at 07:35:20PM -0700, Jeffrey Hanson wrote: > > I was digging around at her web site, and apparently her > > inspiration was seeing suddenly, tammy! do a live show. > > > One of the better songs she sang was one dedicated to Mary Timony > from Helium--another of her influences. I believe that track is on > her album. That would be "Flowers have O's" (mary, you're haunting me, mary it's so spooky/mary I know that you're on to something)... - -Jeff n.p. Cocteau Twins, Four-Calendar Cafe ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 00:03:30 From: meredith Subject: Re: chronic exhalations (off topic) Hi! fleur exhorted: >Nono! Watch "Babylon 5" at 10pm on TNT *tonight*, then catch "South Park" >on Saturday night at 10pm on Comedy Central! :-D No! Watch "Babylon 5" on TNT, while taping South Park on the VCR in the other room, then watch the tape of South Park at 11, fast-forwarding through the commercials!!! :) Or, if South Park is a repeat like tonight, just watch B5 (which, I might add, was brilliantly written by Neil Gaiman this week) and then check e-mail before going to sleep. :) To make this post just a wee bit worthwhile: tomorrow begins another one of Those weekends. Michelle Kinney will be at The Living Room in NYC tomorrow evening, then Susan Werner is at the Iron Horse (svetlana!), and Susan McKeown is at the Rich Forum in Stamford on Saturday. (Fortunately, there's a chance I might actually be home before midnight all three nights, for a change...) Hope to see a bunch o' folks at one or the other of these! "Well, you're not Fiona Apple, and if you're not Fiona Apple, I don't give a rat's ass!" -- Officer Barbrady, South Park P.D. +==========================================================================+ | Meredith Tarr meth@smoe.org | | New Haven, CT USA http://www.smoe.org/~meth | +==========================================================================+ | "things are more beautiful when they're obscure" -- veda hille | | *** TRAJECTORY, the Veda Hille mailing list: *** | | *** http://www.smoe.org/meth/trajectory.html *** | +==========================================================================+ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 00:00:04 -0500 From: wojs of mass destruction Subject: Re: Jayne/Jill also sprach Steve Molla: >I noticed that someone posted the appearance of Jayne Sachs >and Jill Sobule at Bogart's in Cincinnati for the show on >March 18th. I'm definitely planning on going based on Jayne's >appearance alone, but I don't know much about Jill's music. >I'm sure there are some big fans out there. Can anyone tell >me what her style is like? Thanks! jill sobule plays smart, punchy guitar pop, writes matter-of-fact songs often tinged with humor but always revealing a keen observant eye, and sings with a sweet, but sardonic, voice. she's a surprisingly tasty guitarist too (it's not obvious from the records, but her talent really shows live). far as i'm concerned, her live shows are not to be missed. woj n.p. emer kenny (thpth to you know who!) ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 00:15:39 From: meredith Subject: news on Kate Bush tribute album Hi! Stolen from Love-Hounds: >From: "Twomey" >To: >Subject: KATE BUSH TRIBUTE ALBUM: ANNOUNCEMENT! > >Hi all, > >I'm pleased to be able to tell you that I have much news for you regarding >the upcoming Kate Bush Tribute album which you've all been reading scraps >of, courtesy mostly of some very fine love-hounds-sleuthing by Rolf >Peukert!! Our own Thomas Dunning is the executive producer of this very >interesting project. Joining the love-hounds mailing list in January, he >held back on any announcement till the time was right.....(wonderful >self-discipline Thomas!). > >In any case he has carried out an interview with me which you can read at : > >http://www.clubi.ie/twomey/trib.htm > >This will answer any questions you may have for now, as Thomas will be very >busy completing the project in the next several weeks.... >I for one am really really looking forward to this CD!!!! >Sean :-) >Kate Bush News & Information >http://www.clubi.ie/twomey/katebush.htm +==========================================================================+ | Meredith Tarr meth@smoe.org | | New Haven, CT USA http://www.smoe.org/~meth | +==========================================================================+ | "things are more beautiful when they're obscure" -- veda hille | | *** TRAJECTORY, the Veda Hille mailing list: *** | | *** http://www.smoe.org/meth/trajectory.html *** | +==========================================================================+ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 12 Mar 1998 00:11:33 -0500 From: wojs of mass destruction Subject: kim fox also sprach Jeff Wasilko: >Hmm. Another ectosyncronicity. Woj handed me Kim's CD two >weekends ago while we were used CD shopping and it's been in >heavy rotation in my cd changer. i had heard a couple of her songs by accident one evening last year when i caught the world cafe. thought they were okay. then chris beckwith posted in his 1997 top ten: >Kim Fox, Moon Hut >Tori lite? No way! Amos hasn't been this lucid since Little >Earthquakes. Beautiful, funny, unsettling, magical. ...which intrigued me. eventually found a used copy. not sure i agree with chris, since i don't think that tori and kim are similar enough to warrant such a comparison but the suddenly, tammy! inspiration makes perfect sense. nonetheless, it's a very fine album, especially for a debut. woj ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V4 #82 *************************