From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V6 #232 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Friday, August 11 2000 Volume 06 : Number 232 Today's Subjects: ----------------- goin' to Ectofest [Steve VanDevender ] Shivaree and other stories ["Mitchell A. Pravatiner" ] Shannon Wright, Maps of Tacit. [Craig Gidney ] Cowboy Junkies entry [RedWoodenBeads@aol.com] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 9 Aug 2000 23:19:20 -0700 (PDT) From: Steve VanDevender Subject: goin' to Ectofest I think I'm going to be making the trip to Ectofest this year; there aren't many chances to see Happy live, especially for those of us who live on the west coast. Do previous Ectofest attendees have any suggestions for the best place to stay around there? ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2000 01:58:52 -0500 (CDT) From: "Mitchell A. Pravatiner" Subject: Shivaree and other stories I downloaded an MP3 of "Goodnight Moon" from the Capitol Records website, and I like it a lot. Any alternative band with a lead singer named Ambrosia Parsley can't help but intrigue me :-). I just took a close look, for the first time, at one of the towels in the kitchen and discovered that it says "Happy Everything." Since Happy's birthday has now technically come and gone, it is my great pleasure to wish her happy everything :-). Mitch ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2000 11:20:05 -0500 (CDT) From: "Mitchell A. Pravatiner" Subject: Maria Hines - Life in the Garden CD Release (fwd) This might be of interest to those of us in the Chicago area. Life in the Garden is a superb local band. Mitch - ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2000 08:52:51 -0500 From: lifeinthegarden@juno.com To: mapravat@prairienet.org Subject: Maria Hines - Life in the Garden CD Release Hi Everyone! A lot of new and exciting things are happening with Life in the Garden - namely the release of a debut CD, entitled Life in the Garden , and a show in celebration thereof: A 'Sunday Spotlight' at BORDERS BOOKS & MUSIC 2817 N. Clark (at Diversey) FREE SHOW! (773) 935 3909 August 20 at 2 PM Featuring: Maria Hines - Singer/Songwriter/Guitarist Jody Livo - Violin/Backing Vocals Anna Walker - Cello This will be Maria's first solo billing and her first show accompanied by strings only, as opposed to the full band line up. She is thrilled to be working with Jody again (whose violin playing is prominently featured on the CD) and to have the support of Anna on cello - together the three create a surprisingly lush, full sound! Come and wear your summer ensembles - there will be a competition for the best Life in the Garden-esque outfit, and the winner will receive a free CD! To sample a song from the Maria Hines/LITG CD or to purchase the CD, and to hear about other Chicago based singer/songwriters, go to www.trunkstock.com ________________________________________________________________ YOU'RE PAYING TOO MUCH FOR THE INTERNET! Juno now offers FREE Internet Access! Try it today - there's no risk! For your FREE software, visit: http://dl.www.juno.com/get/tagj. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2000 11:33:58 -0700 From: Phil Hudson Subject: Attn: Ecto Musicians Hello fellow Ectopians I am in the process of upgrading my recording studio, and have a number of items that I intend to sell off; rack units, DSPs, mixers, amps, synth modules, speakers, hardware, etc etc. I thought I would offer this stuff to list members before posting it on ebay or a musician's equipment/discussion group (BTW anyone know any good ones?) Of course, there will be additional price discounts for Ectopians; My equipment has been very faithful to me and I'd much rather see this stuff go to a home where it will be put to the making of good music. If anyone is interested, please respond to me offline and I will email you a list best regards Phil np Neutrons: black hole star (circa '74, now OOP) nr Rene Guenon "The reign of quantity and the signs of the times" ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2000 13:16:33 -0700 (PDT) From: Craig Gidney Subject: Shannon Wright, Maps of Tacit. The alchemical art-folk of Shannon Wright turns the familiar into the utterly alien. Sounds, bits of melodies, her voice-you swear that you've heard them before. Then a sudden shift occurs; you realize that Wright is using various phrases and melodies as mere reference points, markers directing you to some undiscovered country. Barely over a half hour long, the music and lyrics are as dense as a Faulkner novel. Angular jazz melts into haunted bordello music, morphing into brittle mountain hillbilly songs before being overwhelmed by mathematically precise rhythms . The acoustic sections spatter and fragment, before acknowledging studio treatments and/or sampling. Her voice at various times is girlish and whispery, like Cranes singer Alison Shaw, or harsh like Mary Margaret O'Hara. Other times, she'll scream. Wright is not afraid to sound ugly, vulnerable or pretty. The music is sparse, but it's too well-crafted to describe as lo-fi. Wright plays most of the instruments, and is assisted by a couple drummers. Lyrically, she uses economical, cryptic, imagery to describe an almost nihilistic state of mind. Her words are beautiful and maddeningly obtuse. There is a feeling of 'outsider art' in some of the images; other times, the words are like arcane equations. A taste of her lyrical oddness is reveals in song titles: "Within the Quilt of Demand;" "Flask Welder;" "The Hover is Ajar." She spikes her distanced verse with doses of humor and pain-it reminds me of the scene in Altered States when William Hurt, the penultimate scientist succumbs to the call of the id. Shannon Wright could be placed on the shelf with Kristen Hersh and Veda Hille. Which is to say she's an idiosyncratic original. http://www.southern.com/southern/band/SHAWR/ __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Kick off your party with Yahoo! Invites. http://invites.yahoo.com/ ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 10 Aug 2000 23:22:55 EDT From: RedWoodenBeads@aol.com Subject: Cowboy Junkies entry Here's my contribution: Cowboy Junkies music is rooted in blues, folk and country styles in the vein of Hank Williams. But they bring it all down to the quietest, most melancholic, dusty, lonesome, small-town sadness imaginable. Defined by Michael Timmins keen ear for country-flavoured melodies and narrative lyrical outlook on claustrophobic small-town life and his sister Margo Timmins' angelic alto, the band has garnered a large enough following to make them one of the most successful cult bands in the world. Yet, their contemplative waltzes have found more of an audience amongst fans of The Velvet Underground, Dinosaur Jr. and/or David Sylvian as Cowboy Junkies brilliance is far beyond the thinking levels of your avergage fan of Garth Brook's brand of over-energized country pop. The story begins with childhood friends Michael Timmins and Alan Anton, who formed a punk-related outfit by the name of The Hunger Project in 1979 in their native Toronto. When that group folded, the pair set out for England with hopes of joining in on the cutting-edge punk scene of the day. There they founded an instrumental punk outfit, Germinal, which also disintegrated. Feeling their dreams had shattered, the two returned home where Michael began jamming casually with his younger brother Peter Timmins on drums. Before long Margo began rehearsing with the pair and Alan was soon called in on bass. Naming themselves Cowboy Junkies to attract attention, the foursome's 1986 debut Whites Off Earth Now's title did little to describe the burgeoning country elegance. Signing to RCA in 1988, the band's second release, The Trinity Sessions (1988, RCA) was recorded at the abandoned Trinity Church for $250 with a single microphone. With melancholic tenderness the Cowboy Junkies brought Hank Williams' "Im So Lonesome I Could Cry" into the despairing, dislocated 90's while a cover of The Velvet Underground's "Sweet Jane" revealed wide ranging influence. Michael Timmins' delicate guitar riffs, Margo's heavenly, soft vocals, Anton's bluesy, walking basslines and Peter's layed-back, simple drumming revealed a band of remarkable talent and originality. No doubt they were, to say the least, a far-fetch from the sexual obsession of Prince's 80's glam empire. Garnering ecstatic reviews and excellent sales, The Trinity Sessions was named album of the year by Rolling Stone. With the success of their second record Cowboy Junkies were able to work with a larger budget during their next recording sessions. The new album, The Caution Horses (1990, RCA) appeared in mid 1990. It continued with its predecessor's shadowy country darkness and a cover of Mary Margaret O'Hara's "You Will Be Loved Again" revealed excellent taste. Although it lacked 'Trinity''s power and stunning quality, and perhaps even bordered on excessive, its sales were excellent and secured the band's loyal following for years to come. The distinguished Black Eyed Man (1992, RCA) would follow two years later. This album's innovation and diversity would correct any of The Caution Horses' weaknesses. "This Street, That Man, This Life" and "Southern Rain" were marvelously akin to Hank Williams' story-telling imagery. The most diverse instances were "To Live is To Fly", the bursting folk-violin energy of which would never be repeated on anything Junkies, and the bass-thick "Murder, Tonight, in The Trailer Park", alluding to a move towards an edgier sound. The more rocking direction continued on Pale Sun, Crescent Moon (1993, RCA), one of the band's finest moments. While the whispering delicacy remained on tracks such as "First Recollection" and "Seven Years" they were now accompanied by bluesy guitar shards that added beautifully to the desolate, wandering feel. Even the quieter tracks, such as "Ring on the Sill" and "White Sail" were less spacious and slightly more upbeat than anything on The Trinity Sessions. Relayings of bewildered, struggling romance were no less astounding and vivid. The most standout track was the nearly shimmering "Anniversary Song", which featured bright guitars and an almost care-free lyrical feel. As 1995 came around Cowboy Junkies parted ways with RCA, and so the label issued a live album, 200 More Miles. Signing to Geffen, the band entered the studio with John Keane to unveil Lay it Down in 1996. Having turned away from more recent releases' rockier feel, Lay it Down was a quieter record in the vein of The Trinity Sessions or The Caution Horses. The rootsier direction caused for some surprise when 1998's Miles from Our Home (1998, Geffen) appeared. With a bold, guitar-heavy drive, the album flaunted a thundering rock approach that somehow kept a clear country edge. Opening track "New Dawn Coming" was twisted, surreal, collapsing effortlessly into the drifting ballad "Blue Guitar". "Miles from Our Home"and "Those Final Feet" were audacious, driving toward the light in a manner completely unheard of from the Cowboy Junkies. Perhaps the most standout track was the gleaming "Darkling Days", a warm reflection carried by graceful, ringing guitars. This was no doubt the Cowboy Junkies' brightest record to date, and also one of their best selling. It was followed by a highly successful tour, in the middle of which the band parted ways with the increasingly over-bearing Geffen. Setting up a dot-com website and forming their own record label, Latent, the Cowboy Junkies settled into a completely uncompromising future. In 1999 they assembeled a collection of rare songs entitled Rarities, B-Sides and Slow Sad Waltzes. They are currently at work on a new album which they have personally expressed will resemble Lay it Down and will supposedly appear sometime in 2001. Cowboy Junkies are clearly one of the most original and interesting bands of the past twenty years and their extremely loyal following seems to bear testimony to their greatness. While they may not rack up the sales of the superficial over-produced over-hyped glam-pop country popularized by the likes of Garth Brooks, they have certainly created music most similar to Hank Williams and Johnny Cash (the godfathers of country) and they have certainly been, by far, the most original of any country-flavoured act to emerge in recent times. Their realm of lonely highways, romantic disillusion and dusty small town life is certainly far more artistic and innovative than new country pop's meandering expulsion of excess energy. They are already showing signs of tremendous influence. Upon simple observation it is clear; Garth Brooks is Mariah Carey with a cowboy hat. Cowboy Junkies are the real deal. The ideal place to begin when engaging in Cowboy Junkies purchase is Studio (1997, BMG), a compilation of selected album cuts from all records up to Lay it Down. If your interest is sparked, then The Trinity Sessions would be the best second step as it is essential to understanding the group's sound. The third purchase should come in either the form of Black Eyed Man or Pale Sun, Crescent Moon. Either one will do, as they both display the band's move toward a rougher approach. Finally, emerse yourself in the bold beauty of Miles from Our Home, the band's most distinct album. ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V6 #232 **************************