Errors-To: owner-ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu Reply-To: ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu Sender: ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu From: ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu To: owner-ecto@ns1.rutgers.edu Bcc: ecto-digest@ns1.rutgers.edu Subject: ecto #1172 ecto, Number 1172 Thursday, 7 July 1994 Today's Topics: *-----------------* My path to "Happy"-ness LaurieAnderson tour/the roaches Change of address follow-up Milla and clubs spirit of the west Re: The Roches Re: Basia Re: West of the Spirit Re: spirit of the west Slaughterhouse Five & Replay Re: LaurieAnderson tour/the roaches Alison Moyet in L.A. ======================================================================== Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 12:25:13 -0500 From: thomas@ctd.comsat.com (James Thomas) Subject: My path to "Happy"-ness I'm a new member of the Ecto newsgroup and a new Happy fan (Hi, everyone! :-). By way of introduction, I thought I might write down the path I took to get here. Please forgive me if it's too long! I _think_ it all began with Enya, some time before 1992. Anyway, I heard her "Orinoco Flow" a few times and saw the video and liked it. I bought the appropriate CD and was disappointed at first. Later I heard some music being played in the background at a second hand clothes store in Alexandria, Virginia, that caught my attention and I asked what it was. Well, it was another Enya album. So, I bought that (there's going to be a lot of "buying" in this story :-) and liked it better than the first album I had gotten. Although eventually my interest in Enya faded, I was in another CD store looking at the Enya bin and someone had written there: "If you like Enya, you might like Clannad". Very helpful, that. Anyway, I bought a Clannad album and liked it a lot. So, to make this part of a long story short, I bought _all_ of Clannad's CDs! OK, it took me a few months to do so. I liked some of them very much, my favorites being the more contemporary ones such as "Sirius" - you know, the ones that get roundly criticized by Celtic traditionalists on alt.music.enya and .celtic! I think at this point there was a lull in my new collecting lust, but in the December, 1992 issue of Pulse magazine (Tower Records), there was a "best new Celtic albums" section which mentioned CDs by Mary Black and Loreena McKennitt as being very good. (I like female vocalists, obviously) These were "Babes in the Wood" by M. Black, and "The Visit" by L. McKennitt. So I bought and loved them both. Well, I'm sure you can figure out by now what I did next. Yup, I bought everything available by both of them. It took a while to find some of the older titles, but eventually I got 'em all. During 1993, I was on a serious Mary Black jag, eventually culminating in seeing her in concert in Fall of '93. (It was very good, but I thought she came across a little too much like she was trying to "make" it). Later in 1993 and currently (I'm listening to "The Mask and Mirror" right now), my interest in Loreena McKennitt began to overshadow Mary Black leading to seeing Loreena in concert earlier this year (Great!). (Both Mary and Loreena were seen at Gaston Hall on the campus of Georgetown University - a nice place for a concert!) Anyway, during 1993, I searched for other Celtic groups that I might like, trying a bunch: Pentangle, Capercaillie, Relativity, De Danann, Steeleye Span, Cherish the Ladies and others. During this same period I found the Internet too! :-) :-) :-) Of course, this led to more discoveries along the way. Probably the first purely net originated discovery was Sarah McLachlan - a pretty nice way to start! Sometime during 1993, I also discovered Tori Amos, first by hearing and liking the songs that got some airplay, then by seeing part of an interview and performance show on TV (MTV? - does anyone remember this - I've never seen any references to it). I bought "Little Earthquakes" and was blown away. Anyway, armed with all the input from the net, more money than I knew what to do with, and Christmas '93 approaching, I starting buying more CDs to put under the tree. These included October Project (who are these guys!), "A Woman's Heart", Richard & Linda Thompson, Nightnoise, Trapezoid, and others. "A Woman's Heart" introduced me to Eleanor McEvoy, Frances Black (Mary's sister), Maura O'Connell, and Delores Keane. Well, I liked all these people too, so... well you know... As it turned out, I liked E. McEvoy and Delores Keane a lot, Maura O'Connell not so much. Oh, and somewhere along the way I tried Jane Siberry and Kate Bush too - without success :-( Well of course, as you know, roaming these newsgroups inevitably leads to seeing mention of something called "Ecto" and somebody named "Happy" something or other :-) For some unknown reason, I resisted buying anything by her for quite some time, despite the fact that she was continually compared to singers I liked a lot like Sarah, Tori, and Loreena. But, my birthday was coming up (June 27th - you wouldn't believe how old I am!) and I needed more input! So Happy's turn finally came. I bought "Equipoise". On the first play I was a _little_ disappointed but by the third I was in love! I especially liked the first 5 cuts, most of all "save our souls" [wait, I'm putting that on now ... 6:15 pause ... :-) ... OK, I'm back]. Well that was only last week so I still don't have "Ecto" :-( but I found the rest! So far I haven't had a chance to give them a fair listen, but my initial impression is that I like "Equipoise" best. Naturally, I was excited to see that a new album may come out soon. [Here's an obscure question: Did she change the microphone she used in recording her vocals beginning with "Warpaint"? There seems to be a slightly harsh tone occasionally on her voice (in some registers) on the earlier albums that I didn't like.] So, where do I stand today? My current favorites are Happy ("Equipoise"), Loreena (M&M, TV, PD), Sarah ("Solace" - I was disappointed with FTE), and Tori (LE - I was also disappointed with UtP) in that order - I think... Tori seems to convey the most raw emotion in her vocals, Sarah has the most quirky (and I mean that in the nicest possible way!) style, and Happy has the best voice and range. Honorable mention goes to October Project - I'd like to see more information about them. (By the way I discovered them when they were being played in the background at a record store :-) If I can get there, I hope to see October Project and Sarah McLachlan in Philly, July 16 or 17th. I haven't seen Tori live yet or Happy of course :-( That's it! If I've named someone that you haven't heard of (I know that's unlikely!) I'd be glad to answer any questions. If you have any other comments please do. Thanks for listening! See Ya, Jim "...please feel free to call, our wheatfields await you all ... won't you just say hello, we'll give you a cable show ..." --- Jim (thomas@ctd.comsat.com) Voice (301)428-4556 Fax (301)428-4534 ======================================================================== From: bhutchin@pen.k12.va.us (Bradley N. Hutchinson) Subject: LaurieAnderson tour/the roaches Date: Thu, 7 Jul 94 12:36:45 EDT Someone in one of the digests spoke of a Laurie Anderson tour this fall. Does anyone have the dates?? Is there a laurie anderson list? And, I tried to post a question about the roaches. A friend heard aversion of Handel's _Messiah_ done by them. Does anyone have any information on this??? Questions questions and very few answers, brad -- I'm still thinking/looking for a new sig quote. bhutchin@pen.k12.va.us ======================================================================== Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 09:48:07 -0700 (PDT) From: Doug Burks Subject: Change of address follow-up Greetings, Several people have asked and I probably should have mentioned it before. Anyway, anything sent to either my Fort Collins address or my first Seattle address will eventually reach me. I'll get stuff sent to the first Seattle address quickly, but the Fort Collins stuff may have an additional week delay (and additional postage). Get those HBP tapes moving!! _Still_ sick and tired of moving (and job hunting, for that matter), I remain ... Doug Burks _O_ @>->--- dbx@hebron.connected.com |< She really is!! ======================================================================== Date: Thu, 7 Jul 94 09:56:59 PDT From: Neal Copperman Subject: Milla and clubs I'm just curious, but is Milla getting any advertising other than in ECTO? She's coming here at the end of the month, and I saw a one line mention in the paper. Tix on sale last Wednesday. I stopped at a Ticketmaster on Saturday, and they brought up 3 seats in the front row. The place is small, but I didn't want to be stuck on the side, and they had no seating chart, so I didn't buy them. Closed SUnday and Monday, but I returned on Tuesday, to find I had only $32 in my wallet and the money machine was down. Not enough to cover the service charges on the $10 tickets. However, I had learned the layout of the small theater (250 seats) and that the tix I turned down were front row center. But they were still there. I returned today, with money, and yes, the 3 front row center tickets were still there. So, one week after tickets went on sale, I may be the only person to have bought them! This doesn't bode well for the show actually taking place though :( And her playing at 15 Minutes in DC (an incredibly tiny club) reminded me of the last time I was there. I went to see Baltimore band Lambs Eat Ivy, a maniacal ensemble you can think of as Hindu hillbillies, singing songs like "My BUddha has Orbs" and "Shiva" with a hillbilly twang and geetar, banjo, fiddle and washboard accompaniment. (Ah, where are they now.) But anyway, I drove down there to see the show, but was unfamiliar with the club. Turns out it is right around the corner from the block where the prostitutes are. In looking for parking, I got stuck in incredibly slow moving traffic, that would cruise along and stop every few feet to chat with the "ladies". It took at least 20 minutes to cover that block, and one way streets directed my course back to the club. I was careful to not get steered onto the same street again, so I avoided the turn lane. Traffic was still crawling, accept for the far left lane, where cars zipped by so fast I couldn't get out of the middle lane. I patiently waited until I would be able to pass the questionable block causing all the ruckus. Just as I prepared to go through the intersection in the middle lane, a car in the left lane decided to turn right. It cut in front of me, and I turned right too, scraping my bumper along the side of the car. Guess they were really anxious to get to those hookers! So we pull over, and this big black man in a fur coat gets out. Now, I'm in downtown DC, on a block full of prostitutes, and I'm pretty nervous. People get killed for stuff like this! The guy looks at his car, apologizes, gives me a cheep, flimsy fake looking card saying he is a software consultant, and we go on our way. Or actually, pull back into the gawking, slow moving line of cars, since I was again trapped on prostitute way. And by the time I got to the club, Lambs Eat Ivy were playing their final song. Not the best concert, but an interesting evening! Hey Ian! Welcome to Ecto! (Ian's my old college friend. I dragged him in after his recent visit with me.) Apologies to our already existing ian, but one's an ee-in and one's a yon. Too bad they are spelt the same way, but that should be enough info for Vickie to make up new names for you :) Neal ----- End Included Message ----- ======================================================================== Date: 07 Jul 94 12:55:06 EDT From: Mike Mendelson Subject: spirit of the west just listening to Go Figure. I love Big Head. Who is John Burrow? And do you know what? This song is **distinctly** XTCish. Just thought I'd share that with y'all. -mjm ======================================================================== From: "Ralph A. Pincus" Subject: Re: The Roches Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 14:00:23 -0400 (EDT) Brad asks... > And, I tried to post a question about the roaches. A > friend heard aversion of Handel's _Messiah_ done by them. Does > anyone have any information on this??? Yes, indeed. The Roches recorded "The Hallelujah Chorus" on their 1982 (!) album _Keep On Doing_. This disc is worth having for that track alone, but there are lots of other gems on it as well. My favorite is "Losing True" which STILL sends chills down my spine. The album was produced by Robert Fripp, who brought Tony Levin and Bill Bruford along for the session. Pretty cool (and unlikely) back-up band, huh? (A side question to Crimson fans: Is it my imagination or does "Losing True" use the same distinctive and haunting chord modulation as "In The Court Of The Crimson King"? Hmmm...) Cheers! --Josh ======================================================================== From: "Neil K. Guy" Subject: Re: Basia Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 11:28:17 -0700 (PDT) > Hello... a friend heard the name "basia" somewhere and wanted to know if > anyone here knows who she is (musical artist obviously ;) So, does > anyone know? Well, since nobody has answered (at least publicly :) I'll tell you what little I know. Basia (pronounced "basha") is the first name of a Polish singer whose last name contains many consonants, thus making it extremely difficult for English speakers like me to remember. She does sort of jazz-inflected happy pop music, generally, from what I've heard. She's got at least a couple of albums out, but hasn't done very well in the North American market. She's made more of an impact on the charts in the UK, I think. - Neil K. -- 49N 16' 123W 7' / Vancouver, BC, Canada / neil_k_guy@sfu.ca ======================================================================== From: "Neil K. Guy" Subject: Re: West of the Spirit Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 11:45:39 -0700 (PDT) Mike, having discovered the sheer unmitigated brilliance of Spirit of the West remarks: > Tam, Patty and I had the distinct pleasure and privilege > of seeing a very hot band from Vancouver, Canada, called > Spirit of the West. The energy present on their 3 CD's (and > esp. their 1st and 2nd CD's) is tenfold live. [...] I agree! Their recordings are great, but live they're a fantastic band. So much energy! They've actually released more than three CDs, incidentally, over their ten year history. At least in Canada. Their albums are: Spirit of the West. (I think vinyl only) Tripping up the Stairs. (Mostly folk-oriented) Labour Day (folk with some electric guitar etc) Save This House (a fairly eclectic mix of songs, more "produced", their first for WEA) Old Material (some live material and old tapes that their former record company released to capitalize on their growing popularity) Go Figure (their break with their folk roots - more rock) Faithlift (a continuation of their rocking sound) Interestingly enough, in a recent interview with John Mann (lead vocalist on most songs) and Geoff Kelly (plays flute, bodhran, guitar) the band said that they were toying with the idea of doing a recording with the Vancouver Symphony, inspired by Elvis Costello's Julia Letters. I wonder what'll come of that idea! :) And as for a possible ectophilic angle, the only woman of the band, Linda MacRae (or is it McRae?) has performed her own solo material live in the past, most notably at a Vancouver women performers concert last year, along with folks like Veda Hille. I don't think she writes material for Spirit of the West, though. > Spirit of the West will be touring with the Tragically Hip in Aug. Oo! Two Canadian bands for the price of one? :) I wish them the best of luck. I'm always rather disappointed that Spirit of the West haven't done better than they have. I think they're a very accomplished band with excellent songwriting and lyric writing skills. It's a shame that they've never met with much commercial success. What do the Crash Test Dummies have that they haven't? :) (aside from a marketable gimmick like Brad Roberts' voice?) > I asked for a tour schedule, but all they could muster up was a business > card. They said if you send them a fax they'll send you a schedule, > so Holly, you might want to try that. If anyone wants I can always call their management since it's a local call for me. Just drop me a line! - Neil K. (who still kinda regrets not going to the SotW Tenth Anniversary gig at the Commodore the other month...) -- 49N 16' 123W 7' / Vancouver, BC, Canada / neil_k_guy@sfu.ca ======================================================================== From: "Neil K. Guy" Subject: Re: spirit of the west Date: Thu, 7 Jul 1994 11:49:11 -0700 (PDT) > I love Big Head. [...] :) "I hope that you'll never see / Me shirtless and groovy in love in B-movies.." > [...] Who is John Burrow? I've wondered this too. By context ("I'd rather live John Burrow's life instead / Of being the man with the big head") it sounds like an idiomatic expression, implying living a modest life of no fame whatsoever. Is it an idiomatic expression? Like Muldoon's picnic or living the life of Riley? Any British ectophiles care to comment? - Neil (also curious) K. -- 49N 16' 123W 7' / Vancouver, BC, Canada / neil_k_guy@sfu.ca ======================================================================== Date: Thu, 7 Jul 94 20:49:17 MET DST From: Albert Philipsen Subject: Slaughterhouse Five & Replay Bob the cloudbuster writes: >On July 1, Warpy commented > >>"...popular view of time travel..." > >Actually, Slaughterhouse Five does not use a commonly held view of time >travel. Oh dear... I told you I was no expert on this subject... >In a sense, it has no time travel. It deals with a character that >is randomly pops into his own consciousness throughout various points in his >life. Yes, the life/time line is linear, but he has no control over the >"excursions" and retains full awareness of each "trip". Therefore, he knows >of his adult life while still in early childhood, etc. Hmm... I can relate to that. I sometimes feel like I'm experiencing something from the past or the future, but the experience is totally symbolic and embedded in the normal story of my life. There's usually no discontinuity in my experienced reality. Of course, the ultimate judge to determine if you're really experiencing time travel is yourself. You could decide, even if the reality you experience is discontinuous, that this is the linear story of your life. >The movie got a bit >tedious at times, but the story concept was interesting. I wonder how a movie with a title like "Slaughterhouse Five" could get tedious. :-) >Bob. Troy Wollenslegel commented: >I have been reading a book called Replay by Ken Grimwood which has a >similar plot. It is quite good and I recomend it for reading. Lets >see here is what the back says: > >"Jeff Winston didn't know he was a replayer. Until he died. Then he woke >up twenty-five years younger. And lived another life. And died again. >And lived another life. And again and again... >Maybe in one of these lifetimes, he'll get it right." Interesting... I can relate to that too. I sometimes feel that what I'm experiencing consciously is not all there is to my life. I feel that the future branches, but most of these branches lead to a dead end. Somehow, I'm only experiencing the most optimal branch. So I guess I'm more lucky than Jeff Winston, because he's experiencing all these branches consciously. >It only happens to Jeff when it dies, but it is kinda neat so far. > >Troy Warpy ======================================================================== From: Stuart Myerburg Date: Thu, 7 Jul 94 15:51:04 -0400 Subject: Re: LaurieAnderson tour/the roaches Bradley asked: > Someone in one of the digests spoke of a Laurie > Anderson tour this fall. Does anyone have the dates?? > Is there a laurie anderson list? I don't know about tour dates, but there is a Laurie Anderson newsgroup. It's alt.fan.laurie.anderson. There used to be a mailing list called o-superman, but I think it's defunct now. Stuart __________________________________________________________________________ Stuart Myerburg labspm@emoryu1.cc.emory.edu "Look, one day I am going to show up at one of your shows with some oven fried chicken and you won't even know Head Like a Hole." - Tori Amos to Trent Reznor __________________________________________________________________________ ======================================================================== Date: Thu, 7 Jul 94 11:49:32 PDT From: hanson@ast.saic.com (Jeffrey Hanson) Subject: Alison Moyet in L.A. Hi folks. I have 4 tickets to the Alison Moyet show in L.A. at Glam Slam on Saturday July 16th that I'd like to sell. I'm not looking to make any money off them or anything--just recoup what I've spent. The tickets are 20.75 each for a grand total of $83.00 (those nasty Ticket Master charges strike again). It's a General Admission show at a small club--should be a great show. I'd be going myself (and may still go if I can't sell them), but she's also playing in San Diego the night before which would be much more convenient for us down here. Please RSVP directly by e-mail ASAP if you're interested. (I need to know whether to purchase San Diego tickets or not.) Thanks! Jeff Hanson hanson@ast.saic.com ======================================================================== 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)