From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V5 #134 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Thursday, April 15 1999 Volume 05 : Number 134 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Stormy Weather ["Drew Harrington" ] Today's your birthday, friend... [Mike Matthews ] Another bloke named Rhodes [Thief Catcher ] Ectophile's Guide to Good Music note [Neile Graham ] Re: Gerrard, Germano [Joseph Zitt ] Re: Gerrard, Germano [Neile Graham ] Re: Lynn Miles [jjhanson@att.net] Re: Gerrard, Germano--now Alexiou/Divas [jjhanson@att.net] new releases, Lisa Ekdahl [Richard Holmes ] Garmarna [Neile Graham ] Wanted: Moody indie boyrock fan [Neile Graham ] looking for Stormkro ["Paul Huesman" ] Re: Dalbello/Lisa Dal Bello [Shirley Ye ] Re: looking for Stormkro [Bill Mazur ] Re: Dalbello/Lisa Dal Bello [Bill Mazur ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Tue, 13 Apr 1999 23:06:53 -0700 From: "Drew Harrington" Subject: Stormy Weather >> Yesterday in the mail I got a box from AT&T trying to sell me >> on their personal network services. No thanks. But I opened the box >> just to see what they sent, and discovered a CD. It's called >> "Stormy Weather", and apparently contains several performances >> from a benefit concert for the Walden Woods Project, produced >> by Don Henley. Anyone else gotten this yet? > >I got it. I went wild with anticipation when I saw the names. I listened >to it and heard syrupy 101 Strings arrangements, the kind of stuff that >normal people my age enjoy, people who stopped listening to new things >in their thirties. I filed the CD. > >I think Shawn, Joni, Paula et al should sue Don Henley and James Earl >Jones for defamation. I thought it was... okay... I was suprised I'd never heard of it when I saw a coworker had one. I checked ebay. 12 copies averaging $20! Amusingly Stevie nicks was the most common bait line. "RARE Stevie Nicks"? Searching the net for info on the concert the recording was made at I found that there were a couple interesting duets that didn't make the disk. Joni Michell and Bjork anyone? Drew ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 03:00:04 -0400 (EDT) From: Mike Matthews Subject: Today's your birthday, friend... i*i*i*i*i*i i*i*i*i*i*i *************** *****HAPPY********* **************BIRTHDAY********* *************************************************** *************************************************************************** ***************** Stuart Myerburg (stuart@sph.emory.edu) ****************** *************************************************************************** -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Stuart Myerburg Mon April 14 1969 Aries T-Bone Wed April 15 1992 happy cat Jeff Hanson Sat April 16 1966 Aries Michael Klouda Mon April 17 1967 Aries Harry Foster Sat April 21 1956 NiceGuy Kjetil Torgrim Homme Thu April 23 1970 Taurus Jeff Burka Thu April 24 1969 GoFlyAKite Christine Waite Tue April 25 1972 Taurus Matt Adams Thu April 26 1962 Taurus Brad Hutchinson Tue April 28 1964 What sign? Geoff Parks Sun April 30 1961 Taurus Barney Parker Fri May 02 1986 happy cat Gray Abbott Tue May 03 1955 Suprised Tamar Boursalian Tue May 03 1966 Taurus Richard A. Holmes May 07 Taurus Steve Ito Fri May 08 1970 DA Bull... Brian Gregory Thu May 09 1963 Eclectic Patrick Varker Wed May 12 1954 Torius Steve Fagg Tue May 13 1958 Nightwol Karel Zuiderveld Fri May 13 1960 Stier - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 07:59:50 -0400 (EDT) From: Thief Catcher Subject: Another bloke named Rhodes This post actually has little to do with Happy herself, and I don't know if the individual in question is related to her, but -- has anyone here ever heard or heard of Emmit Rhodes? I've been getting into his music lately, which is (duh) quite good. For those of you in need of some background, Emmit was in a band called the Merry-Go-Round, which signed to A&M while he (and possibly his bandmates) were still in their teens -- while it didn't set the world on fire commercially, it did provide the band with "Live", a minor hit later covered by the Bangles. The band dissolved when he was 19, and he returned to his studio in his parents' home and recorded his self-titled solo album, which Dunhill ended up pressing. This contained another hit, the tune "Fresh as a Daisy", and he ended up signing with Dunhill. Unfortunately, his contract demanded unrealistic expectations of him (the execs wanted him to put out one album every six months), and after two records that aren't as good as the first (called _Mirror_ and _Return to Paradise_), he retired into obscurity and worked as a house engineer at some major label. The music itself is quite amazing -- beautiful, insidiously poppy tunes with suprisingly baroque arrangements and production (considering its basement origin). You can hear its influence on many artists, most notably the Elephant 6 collective, to this day. It gives me a warm, fuzzy feeling and reminds me of hanging out with my dad, watching the airplanes take off, back when I was nine or ten and discovered baroque-y folk rock through my parents' records. Anyway, aside from discussing Emmit, I wanted to see if anyone else had any leads to getting some of his more obscure stuff? The self-titled album is plentiful in the Boston area, and I've been able to find _Mirror_ and the frightening-looking _Return to Paradise_ (eeek, does it ever look like a _Jonathan Livingston Seagull_ knockoff, which is SO not my thing), but his earlier work, particularly with the Merry-Go-Round, is proving elusive. He does have another solo album out that's demos and outtakes from the sessions that produced his official first album that's supposedly easy to find, but I haven't found a copy yet. If anyone out there wants to help a girl in need... And, finally, does anyone know what he's up to now? There's a compilation out that features a song of his from 1990 along with some of his older stuff, but what has he been doing since _REturn to Paradise_ hit the cut-out bins? Is he still producing, or recording new stuff? - --Chelsea "Daisy Fresh" Spear - --- Chelsea the mod pixie tugboat@channel1.com http://i.am/modpixie "And all advice is ways of saying 'let it go' Some form of 'smile, the world has found a way around the issue'..." -- Scott Miller/Loud Family, "Just Gone" ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 07:49:49 -0800 From: Neile Graham Subject: Ectophile's Guide to Good Music note Hey all-- This has come up once or twice and I thought I should just make this clear to everyone--if there's ever anything you don't like in your comments onsite on The Ectophiles' Guide, say for example something sounded stronger than you meant it in that context or if you change your mind about an artist or album either way, feel free to email me or the Guide's email address with the changes. We're more than happy to adjust this stuff to your liking--they're your words and we want you to be happy with your contributions. - --Neile n.p. Garmarna, _Vengeance_ n.r. Sean Stewart, _Mockingbird_ (damn this is good) - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Neile Graham ...... http://www.sff.net/people/neile ....... neile@sff.net Les Semaines: A Weekly Journal . http://www.sff.net/people/neile/semaines The Ectophiles' Guide to Good Music ....... http://www.smoe.org/ectoguide ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 15:22:37 -0400 From: Joseph Zitt Subject: Re: Gerrard, Germano On Wed, Apr 14, 1999 at 11:06:28AM +1000, Andrew Fries wrote: > Lisa Gerrard's Mirror Pool has a definite place in my collection, and I agree > about Sanvean - to me this is one of the most beautiful *end* emotional pieces > of music ever! All the same, it seems one record is enough for me because > somehow I never got motivated enough to buy her second solo album. It's funny: The Mirror Pool is one of my all-time faves, but, after grabbing Duality the day it came out, I've only listened to it twice. It struck me as pretty much the same thing -- in fact,I was sure that one of the melodies appeared on both CDs, but wasn't motivated enough to check. The (way too many) times that I've moved since The Mirror Pool came out, I've always put it on as the first disc after putting a stereo together. It gives a good feel for how sonically "warm" a room is. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 09:13:08 -0800 From: Neile Graham Subject: Re: Gerrard, Germano Jeff Hanson wrote: >It's funny that Neile and I differ so much on this, >because normally we really do share similar tastes. >(Well, sort of--we do have our share of differences-- >she tends to like things crunchier than I, and I >tend to like a lot of smoother show-tunier stuff than >she does). Yes, this is definitely true. Though when I was a kid I was well-known for singing along to _Gypsy_ ("if you wanna bump it/bump it with a trumpet") >I don't see how you can't see the human feeling, as >listening to Sanvean seems to physically break my >heart, but I can see your point on her pretentiousness. Actually, pretentiousness per se doesn't bug me, either. I probably didn't say this the right way around the first time. It's only partially her voice/performance that doesn't move me--it's mostly the presentation of the music. >In this video she explains why most of her songs >are wordless--because words often get in the way of >the direct emotions--she compares finding the right >phrase to express the emotion similar to finding >the right words for a poem--but >I can see why a poet might be frustrated by the >lack of ability to express these emotions in words. Except I love music in languages I don't understand a word of, and some of my favourite vocals are wordless, like Anna Homler's in _Do Ya Si Di Do_ and Meredith Monk's. Gabriel Yacoub is one of my favourites ever and he sings in French which I have a minimal and laboured understanding of. Lyrics are a secondary thing that only comes to me in later appreciation of music, and I don't think I've ever liked an artist for their lyrics when their music didn't so something for me as well, but I've frequently loved artists for their music when their lyrics were just so-so. Hmm. Occasionally really awkward combinations of music/lyrics have put me off, like with Paula Cole's screaming repetitions of "You call me a bitch in heat / and I call you a liar" which seemed fine the first time she sang it and it got more and more banal for me by the end of the song. Now I can't listen to that one at all and the disc hasn't come out much at all since I bought it. >> You see, lemon is my favourite flavour. Tangy and >sharp and a little too >> much for most people. I like curry too for the same >reason. That's what >> Lisa Germano is. > >That's really funny Neile chooses these metaphors, >as bright yellow is one of my least favorite colors >(it's fine on lemons, but I wouldn't want to paint a >room that color), and I'm not much of a curry fan either. >I like it only in very small doses. Heh, well, lemon yellow as a colour doesn't do that much for me either except in preference to other colours and as a colour I hate bright red, but as an emotion and as a musical flavour I like both lemon and blood red. I can intellectually understand why people like Lisa Gerrard and can even point out things that I like about what she does, it's just that the overall effect is negative for me. Strange, that. - --Neile - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Neile Graham ...... http://www.sff.net/people/neile ....... neile@sff.net Les Semaines: A Weekly Journal . http://www.sff.net/people/neile/semaines The Ectophiles' Guide to Good Music ....... http://www.smoe.org/ectoguide ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 16:24:12 +0000 From: jjhanson@att.net Subject: Re: Lynn Miles Sherlyn Koo replied regarding my request about who Lynn Miles sounds like: > "Night in a Strange Town" had a lot of moments that > reminded me of other people, too. There's one track on > there ("Sunset Boulevard") that really reminds me of > Sheryl Crow. In other places she sounds a lot like > Jann Arden. Overall though I'd probably compare her > most closely to someone like Diane Ziegler... That's amazing. I listened to this again yesterday before I read your message and I said to myself, gee, her songwriting really reminds me of Jann Arden, except for this Sunset Boulevard song reminds me of something Sheryl Crow would write. The last track on the album (the one with solo piano), finally reminded me of who I think her voice sounds like-- Beverly Craven with a bit of country. > Go, buy "Slightly Haunted", tell us what you think! I think I will! Jeff ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 16:56:05 +0000 From: jjhanson@att.net Subject: Re: Gerrard, Germano--now Alexiou/Divas Neile replies to my comments about poets appreciating a precision in lyrics: > > Except I love music in languages I don't understand a word of, and some of > my favourite vocals are wordless, like Anna Homler's in _Do Ya Si Di Do_ > and Meredith Monk's. Gabriel Yacoub is one of my favourites ever and he > sings in French which I have a minimal and laboured understanding of. > Yes, I can definitely see your point here--I agree-- I love a lot of music I can't understand a word of-- the latest being Haris Alexiou. I think she has one of the most emotive, passionate voices I've heard. (And I'm so glad that ecto introduced me to her and to the Greek Music Video Superstore in Astoria, NY: www.greekmusicusa.com). I also love her lyrics--though all I rely on is the english tranlsations provided. Though typically for me to really love a foreign singer, the music has to be exceptionally catchy. That's not the case with Haris--her voice is really what sells me, though her musical arrangements are usually quite good, they're pretty much pop ballads with lots of greek influences thrown in for good measure. So how does the new Garmarna album compare with previous? I love the Garmarna albums I have--(whose names I forget), and I still kick myself for not going to see them when I had the chance in Minneapolis. Last night I suffered through the VH-1 Divas show--which actually wasn't terrible, but I was disappointed by the short amount of time Cher got--even if she did lip-sync most of Believe and seemed totally worn out after two songs. Whitney I can do without. Anyway, I got to thinking about my ideal diva show-- if I could pick 10 women to give a personal concert who would I pick? Well, here's what I came up with: 1. Kate Bush (of course) 2. Happy Rhodes (also, of course) 3. Alison Moyet 4. Annie Lennox 5. Haris Alexiou 6. Jane Siberry 7. Betty Buckley 8. Ann Hampton Callaway 9. Victoria Williams 10. Cassandra Wilson There are some notable omissions, but mostly because I've seen those performers quite a few times alreay (people like Jewel, Tori, Sarah, Holly Cole,etc.) I've seen half of these before too (all but Kate, Haris, Ann, Victoria, and Cassandra), but would love to see them again. Jeff Hanson ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 10:20:27 -0700 From: Richard Holmes Subject: new releases, Lisa Ekdahl Jill :D writes: > Nothing jumps out at me this week.....although Lisa Ekdahl is ok.... Isn't she mostly jazz standards... checked out her earlier CD from the library and was enjoyable, but didn't make me run out and buy it... - -Richard Holmes (rholmes@ccrma.stanford.edu) ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 10:29:58 -0800 From: Neile Graham Subject: Garmarna Jeff Hanson asked: >So how does the new Garmarna album compare with previous? >I love the Garmarna albums I have--(whose names I >forget), and I still kick myself for not going to see >them when I had the chance in Minneapolis. I haven't had a chance to spend much time with it yet, but I love the new one so far, and suspect it will become my favourite. It's a little more contemporary-electronic based, but still the same great traditional material. I think they handle the combination extremely well. Seeing them live is strange in that there's these wild excellent musicians playing as though their lives depended on it, they're _so_ into it. Then there's a young woman in front, singing impassively as though she'd rather be invisible thank-you-very-much, and yet her voice is so into it. She ducks out the instant she doesn't have to be at the mic. Those of you who are interested in more stripped down traditional Swedish music and who love Emma Hardelin's voice (she's also the lead singer for Garmarna) should seek out the Traikel disc. It's her and two other musicians. All these things are available in the U.S. through Northside Records as http://www.noside.com if you can't find them elsewhere. - --Neile - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Neile Graham ...... http://www.sff.net/people/neile ....... neile@sff.net Les Semaines: A Weekly Journal . http://www.sff.net/people/neile/semaines The Ectophiles' Guide to Good Music ....... http://www.smoe.org/ectoguide ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 14:54:01 -0700 From: Neile Graham Subject: Wanted: Moody indie boyrock fan Hey all-- I received a disc to review for The Ectophiles' Guide that hasn't been claimed yet, so I thought I'd throw it open to the list. The band is called Creeping Myrtle, and as I said in the subject line, moody indie boyrock pretty much describes this to me, and personally I kind of like it. They have a website with sound samples at http://www.doldrum.com, so you can have a taste before committing to this. What you get: the copy of the disc for your own to keep What you do: give a reasonable review of the disc (I fill out the basics, but I need comparisons, general comments about the band, specific comments about the album, and a recommendation--I don't demand that these are entirely positive, but ask that if you end up not liking the disc's style or something very basic like that, that you're willing to pass this on to someone else who might to give the disc a fair shake) What happens if you take this on and can't do it: you need to be willing to forward the disc on to someone else in a timely manner Let me know if you're interested. - --Neile n.p. Thea Gilmore, _Burning Dorothy_ - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Neile Graham ...... http://www.sff.net/people/neile ....... neile@sff.net Les Semaines: A Weekly Journal . http://www.sff.net/people/neile/semaines The Ectophiles' Guide to Good Music ....... http://www.smoe.org/ectoguide ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 14:08:35 -0500 From: "Paul Huesman" Subject: looking for Stormkro PAUL HUESMAN @ BSSBNOTES 04/14/99 02:08 PM (Embedded image moved to file: pic12051.pcx) Hello all. I'm looking for a cd by a group called Stormkro. They're a progressive (early Genesis/ Yes type stuff) group out of Los Angeles. Does any one in ecto land have any information on them? Thanks, Paul Huesman ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 20:44:04 -0700 From: Shirley Ye Subject: Re: Dalbello/Lisa Dal Bello I know that this is an old topic, but I thought you guys might be interested in this tidbit of news... I talked to Dalbello's manager/brother on the phone today and asked him about a new album... all he said was that they were discussing it. Whore is not deleted, but is a German (and Canada?) release. He told me something about how EMI went under in the USA, so that explains why her material is hard to find here. Touring is a lot of money - about $10,000 - and since Dalbello doesn't even have an American release or a recent album to promote, touring in the near future is sorta out. Julian Lennon has a track on his new album which is a duet of sorts with Dalbello, plus she co-wrote the song. I asked him if it was possible that Dalbello would tour with him in the US - he said highly unlikely. He did mention some European tour dates though, and would let people know on the mailing list, which you can sign up via the official site www.dalbello.com He says that she is an amazing performer... we also talked about other things. Did you know David Foster, present manager of Celine Dion (gag!), used to manage Dalbello? Funky Thats it =) Shirley Ye Berkeley, California shye@uclink4.berkeley.edu I am not an angry girl, but it seems like I've got everyone fooled. Every time I say something they find hard to hear, they chalk it up to my anger and never to their own fear. - -Ani Difranco, Not a Pretty Girl ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 22:40:22 -0700 From: Bill Mazur Subject: Re: looking for Stormkro Paul, I am a big prog music fan and have been for many years. I searched all of the prog music online vendors that I normally work with and found nothing on a CD release from Stormkro. I did however find a review of an August '97 concert from the Expose Concert Series held at the Club KAOS in Fremont, CA. Stormkro was the headliner of that show. Expose is a well-regarded prog music magazine. The Expose Concert Series sponsors prog concerts in the SF Bay Area. Here are their URLs: http://www.geocities.com/SunsetStrip/Arena/5077/main.html http://www.geocities.com/Hollywood/1831/expo-nl.html Here is the review of the show: Los Angeles based Stormkro headlined the performance and played material from the their sole debut release, "Some Odd Years." Before the show, the six-piece ensemble had been getting favorable comparisons to Kansas, Styx, and various other acts; although versatile in many styles, the band played an uneven set of progressive metal songs (the few high points of their set) tarnished by acoustic ballads, blues numbers and failed stage jokes (including a miniature flying saucer traversing the stage during a number about a crazed TV evangelist). Patience was waning during their almost agonizing set after a mere four songs. Their cover of the Styx classic track Come sail away was probably the strongest piece they played the entire evening. It is rumored that after the show, a small cadre of co-promoters formed to lynch the single perpetrator for stretching not only the boundaries of rock, but also the endurance capability of our small but dedicated audience. Somehow he escaped with his life intact despite the intense ridicule of his compatriots. BTW, the following URL is great jumping off point to locate progressive rock music resources: http://www.progrock.net/ I hope this information helps you out in some way. Good luck in your quest. Best Regards, Bill M. > I'm looking for a cd by a group called Stormkro. > They're a progressive (early Genesis/ Yes type stuff) group out of Los > Angeles. > Does any one in ecto land have any information on them? > > Thanks, > Paul Huesman ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 14 Apr 1999 22:50:18 -0700 From: Bill Mazur Subject: Re: Dalbello/Lisa Dal Bello Shirley Ye wrote: I talked to Dalbello's manager/brother on the phone today and asked him > about a new album... all he said was that they were discussing it. Whore is > not deleted, but is a German (and Canada?) release. He told me something > about how EMI went under in the USA, so that explains why her material is > hard to find here. Touring is a lot of money - about $10,000 - and since > Dalbello doesn't even have an American release or a recent album to > promote, touring in the near future is sorta out. Julian Lennon has a > track on his new album which is a duet of sorts with Dalbello, plus she > co-wrote the song. I asked him if it was possible that Dalbello would tour > with him in the US - he said highly unlikely. Shirley, I have a couple of questions. Does Dalbello also go by another name? Are you referring to the new Julian Lennon release "Photograph Smile"? I recently picked up this CD, which I feel is a really outstanding release. There is only one song on the CD that has female vocals on it. It is called "Faithful". It is a very beautiful ballad, probably one of my favorite pieces on the release, and the female voice on that song is wonderful. The credits say that it was written by Julian Lennon with Guest Vocals by Gemma Hayes. Is that another name for Dalbello? Bill M. n.p. Julian Lennon _Photograph Smile_ ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V5 #134 **************************