From: owner-ecto-digest To: ecto-digest@ns2.rutgers.edu Subject: ecto-digest V2 #321 Reply-To: ecto@nsmx.rutgers.edu Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Thursday, 28 December 1995 Volume 02 : Number 321 The Ecto digest is now being generated automatically. Please send problems and questions to: ecto-owner@nsmx.rutgers.edu. ---------------------------------------------------------------------- From: ariel_b@pipeline.com (Ariel Brennan) Date: Thu, 28 Dec 1995 02:50:40 -0500 Subject: Re: My Top 10 On Dec 27, 1995 20:38:44, 'maeldun@i-2000.com (Michael Doyle)' wrote: >>Only 28? By the gods, how do you survive? ;) >Mm-hmm. I expected someone to say as much... Of course! >Look, I budgeted myself for only 16 at the beginning of the year. For me, 28 >is shameful excess! !!! Well, I admire your restraint. But... 28... ;> A - -- "I don't care, cause sometimes, I said sometimes, I hear my voice, and it's been here..." - Tori Amos ------------------------------ From: jeffy@wam.umd.edu Date: Thu, 28 Dec 95 15:36:42 EST Subject: Mitch's visit Hey, folks... Welp, I've heard from a total of 3 people regarding getting together with Mitch this weekend. It seems that Saturday during the day is best for all involved. Still don't really have any clues on where, when specifically, or what we might end up doing. If anyone else is interested, now would be a good time to drop me a line! Otherwise, I'll just deal with those involved through private e-mail. Jeff |Jeffrey C. Burka | "When I look in the mirror, I see a little clearer/ | | | I am what I am and you are you too./ Do you like | |jeffy@wam.umd.edu | what you see? Do you like yourself?" --N. Cherry | ------------------------------ From: Kevin John Contzen Date: Wed, 27 Dec 1995 12:12:42 -0800 (PST) Subject: diamanda galas spent about an hour listening to diamanda galas' _plague mass_ with damon last night, and i'm mightily impressed... rarely does music affect me as much as _plague mass_ did. before hearing it, i'd always reacted with skepticism to claims that music can be "scary" or "frightening," but PM manages... her voice at points sounds so ravaged, so torn from her body, yet so angry.. the lyrics vary from chanting excerpts from the old testament to beautifully horrible poems like "let my people go"... while i don't think it's something i would listen to very often -- it requires concentration and demands attention and time and the will to understand it -- it is so impacting and uniquely powerful that i definitely need to get it (despite its $28.79 price tag :( ) kevin - -------------------------------------------------------------------------------- kevin contzen ....... so take a lesson from the strangeness you feel and know vancouver, bc ..... you'll never be the same and find it in your heart to kneel canada ... down and say i gave my love didn't i? and i gave big some contzen@sfu.ca . times and i gave it in my own sweet time i'm just leaving ------------------------------ From: brianb@intex.net (Brian Bloom) Date: Thu, 28 Dec 1995 12:16:18 -0600 Subject: Diva anyone? Heigh-ho y'all! Simple, but strange request... I bought a nice Yamaha keyboard as a Christmas/Chanukah gift for my wife (and also for me ) I'm trying to teach myself how to play some of the songs that I like. I'm starting with "Sentimental Walk" from the Diva soundtrack. I'm able to get most of the melody, but I'm horrible with chords and having problems figuring out the left hand parts becuase of this. Does anyone have sheet music for this? If not, can someone with the album and a good ear figure it out for me? I'm stuck on the chord that's played during the first few notes.. *Many* thanks in advance for this.. If anyone knows a good site for sheet music/notation, please let me know! Happy Moo Year! br!an the moo-man Heigh-ho y'all! Simple, but strange request... I bought a nice Yamaha keyboard as a Christmas/Chanukah gift for my wife (and also for me ) I'm trying to teach myself how to play some of the songs that I like. I'm starting with "Sentimental Walk" from the Diva soundtrack. I'm able to get most of the melody, but I'm horrible with chords and having problems figuring out the left hand parts becuase of this. Does anyone have sheet music for this? If not, can someone with the album and a good ear figure it out for me? I'm stuck on the chord that's played during the first few notes.. *Many* thanks in advance for this.. If anyone knows a good site for sheet music/notation, please let me know! Happy Moo Year! br!an the moo-man __ ____ __ ____ __ __ /\ \ / \_\ / /\ / \ \ / |\ / /\ br!an bloom / \_\ / /\ |_| / / /| /\ \ \ / ||/ / / brianb@ti.com / /\ | |\ \/ /_/_ / / / \ \/ \ \ / |/ / / bl8m@mimi.ti.com / \/ |_| \ __ \_\ /_/ / \ /\ \_\ / /| / / brianb@lobby.ti.com / /\ ./_/ \ \ \/_/_\_\/ \ \ \/_// / | / / brianb@dlep1.itg.ti.com \ \/ |_| \ \_\ /_/\ \ \_\ /_/ /|_/ / brianb@cheatsheet.itg.ti.com \__/_/ \/_/ \_\/ \/_/ \_\/ \_\/ bl8m.dskpo33b@dskbgw1.itg.ti.com ------------------------------ From: jsutton@rahul.net (Jack Sutton) Date: Wed, 27 Dec 1995 11:54:00 -0800 Subject: Top a little more than 10 Hello, When I look at other peoples top albums for the year, I'm amazed by how much new music is around that I haven't even heard, despite my best efforts and massive outlays of cash. One of the great blessings we have is the abundance of quality music available to us. Anyway my top 10 albums of the year based on only what I've listened to and, are but a subset of what's in existence. Tracy Chapman---"New Beginning" Tracy Chapman is truly one of the most gifted artists on the scene. New Beginning is as good, and possibly is the best thing she's done yet. Her songwriting coupled with her creamy smooth, soulful, near perfect voice connect on all fronts. "Give me One Reason" is one of those songs that just rings right down to the natural chord of your being. I rate it right in with "All That You Have is your Soul" which until now I considered Tracy's best. Chris Webster---"Drive" This is Chris's first solo effort. She is a member of a band called Mumbo Gumbo from around the Sacramento Area. Previously she recorded backing vocals for Jennifer Berezan. I first saw her doing backing vocals for Jennifer and was really impressed with her voice even from the small snippets I heard. When I heard she was working on "Drive", I suspected it might be pretty good, but I was shocked by how good it is. All the songs are original except two , "Ball and Chain " by Van Morrison, and a Jennifer Berezan song "Turning of the Wheel ". She's bluesy at times and generally rocks other times. She's a great singer and songwriter, I can only see a bright road ahead for her. Tanita Tikaram---"Lovers in the City" This album sounds as fresh and exciting today as it did when 1st released in early 95---despite many, many plays. Melissa Ferrick---"Willing to Wait" 12 really superb songs point to a powerful being as source. This adds another artist to the list of people sure to be producing quality work for a long time in the future. Laurie Anderson---"Bright Red/The Ugly One With The Jewels" I sort of consider these two as companion discs especially coupled with the experience of her live show. This woman is a pure genius. She brings so much creativity to every aspect of her being, whether singing, dancing, weaving lasers with visuals and sound or just telling stories. The great surprise for me was hearing Lou Reed with Laurie on "In Our Sleep". Great song, I bet more will follow. Flash Girls---"Maurice and I" What a duo these two are, you know why Lorraine Garland is simply called The Fabulous Lorraine after hearing their music, especially live. Emma Bull, the other half , could just as well be called The Fabulous Emma, they just click together. Ronnie & Rob McCoury--"Ronnie & Rob McCoury--I'll say it without reservation--this is the best bluegrass album I've ever heard. Ronnie and Rob, sons of Del McCoury are two of the finest musicians in the business, and with the addition Stuart Duncan on fiddle this is a masterpiece. Ronnie's mandolin playing is spectacular throughout, but on the first cut "Wailin' on Waldron" written by Ronnie, its downright unbelievable. Betty Elders---"Crayons" Another one of those incredible singer songwriters from Austin. Crayons is laced with 13 thoughtful, insight full , beautifully written songs. The kind of songs you want to curl up with and really get to know. They're personal songs about the thoughts, feelings, loves, and fears we all experience. She delivers them with the musical quality natural to her voice and arranges them with skill and fine backing musicians. Happy Rhodes---"The Keep" Just listen to her voice and melt. A collection of remixes and new material that reinforce the genius of this unique artist. Natalie Merchant---"Tigerlilly" Natalie is another artist that has proved to me through every album she's released, that she is incapable of generating anything other than excellence. Jennifer Berezan---"She Carries Me" This is a two song meditative journey into the spiritual and musical world of Jennifer Berezan. Olympia Dukakis adds some soul inspiring spoken word treasures to the 23 minute "She Who Hears The Cries Of The World". This is the type of music to listen to with the lights low, no interruptions, and mind open to new discoveries. See what happens. Sandy Ross---"Portraits of Innocence" A beautiful collection of insightful songs written by a master student of relationships, feelings, and consciousness. Jane Siberry---"Marie" A lot of Jane fans were surprised by the Jazz flavor of this release. If you have a slight jazz aversion, it may take several listens to recognize the genius behind this work. Joan Armatrading---"What's Inside" Joan's like a veteran baseball player who has experience many fine seasons in the past, but has not made a splash of note lately. Then boom, a career season--comeback player of the year, MVP, Cy Young. That's how I feel about "What's Inside" Laura Kemp "Volcano" I know this was released in late 1994, but I'm only now getting a chance to listen to it. It would have made my 1994 top ten list, if I had only heard it. So I think it only fair to add it to my 1995 list. A great effort, she's got it. Happy Holidays to all. Jack Sutton ------------------------------ From: basil@naxs.com (Brad Hutchinson) Date: Wed, 27 Dec 1995 14:52:43 -0500 Subject: listz First off, I'm going to admit that I've become addicted to Laurie Anderson's _Puppet Motel_. Jill got me a cdrom player (is that what one calls them) and this cdrom for this holiday and I've been "inside" way too much since. I think she wishes she hadn't made these purchases. Tell me, those of you who've had this for a while, does it wear off? Will i recover or will i have to go into recovery and some sort of program (either the normal 12 step or Jane Siberry's 24)? This leads me to a question--could this count as a favorite of '95? If not, I've only got nine. And the order gets arranged according to time of day and mood and place and what kind of car ride I'm undertaking and and and. . . Thus I'm going to alphabetize them by artist. Oh yeah, I've also included things released years ago and just acquired. The Amsterdam Guitar Trio _J. S. Bach Brandenburg 2, 3, 5, 6_ I know, not at all ectoish (there is a female member--can this count>) but some really nice work. . . . and it came out years ago. Oh well, we keep listening to it over and over. Laurie Anderson's _The Ugly One. . ._ is something I should get tired of, but haven't yet. It still can make a long night drive interesting. Laurie Anderson's _Puppet Motel_ see above! David Bowie's _Outside_ is a guilty pleasure. I like the music too much not to listen but the liner notes and lyrics. . . . I hope the next two in the series redeem the subject matter of this one. The Robert Fripp String Quartet and the California Guitar Trio _The Bridge Between_ has been one of my favorite driving tapes this year. The final song "Threnody for souls in torment" or some such title still makes me switch off the tape if I'm driving home late at night though. King Crimson _B'Boom_ is lots of fun. I liked _Thrak_ but this one seems much much better. It's also nice to have a new version of "Red" which also makes me want to run out and buy that old favorite from high school on cd. I'd thought the three 80's ones had surpassed it but this version of "Red" is really wonderful. Alanis Morissette _Jagged Little Pill_ seems to evoke either a positive or negative reaction. Mine was positive. I thought I'd get tired of it when I bought it but I haven't yet. . . Rusted Root _Cruel Sun_ really falls out of the ecto line (strains of Joni's "jungle line") but Jill and I remember hearing them open at a club we used to go to in Morgantown, WV called the Underground and they had a band of a friend of mine Rasta Rafiki play with them and and and enough excuses? It really is a fun album. Jane Siberry _Maria_ is one that I'm taking on faith. I listen to it a lot. I like it but only "Oh my my" seems to have attached itself to my soul. I suspect that time is what I need. All the others took time to integrate for me. . . Hector Zazoo _Songs from the Cold Seas_ is one of the nicest strangest albums I keep listening to this year. Lots of great stuff here. There, I did it, my first ever top ten list. Or top nine if _Puppet Motel_ doesn't count. Hope everyone is having a season. brad Accuracy of observation is the equivalent of accuracy of thinking. - --Wallace Stevens brad hutchinson: bhutchin@pen.k12.va.us or Jill Sunderlin and brad basil@netaccess.naxs.com ------------------------------ From: Steve VanDevender Date: Wed, 27 Dec 1995 13:02:33 -0800 Subject: Re: Ah, the weekend's ectophillic acquisitions, plus! Ariel Brennan writes: > Re: Diamanda Galas > > >i was intruiged by the discussion of diamanda here, mainly because she'd > >been described as "frightening" and i tend to like music that a lot of > >people call spooky (hi ariane ;). anyway, i put _the plague mass_ on my > >list and lo and behold, there it was on christmas day looking like a > return > >to the seventeenth century :P she *is* frightening! > > It's music! How scary can it be? ;> > >and good god, i don't know where i'd put diamanda galas. the section with > > >the big "DO NOT TOUCH UNLESS YOU ARE EITHER INCREDIBLY BRAVE OR BOTH DEAF > >AND BLIND" sign on it, maybe :P > > ROFL! Come now, it can't be THAT weird... ;> Oooooh, you are dangerously innocent. A testimonial to the power of Diamanda Galas: During a trip to Atlanta I met Valerie Nozick, when she was still living there. We went to the Atlanta Tower Records, where _Plague Mass_ was in the cutout bin. I bought it out of curiosity. Then I loaned it to a friend of mine. The mother of one of his roommates had developed the annoying habit of coming over to visit, cleaning things that they didn't want cleaned, and drinking any liquor in the house (really!). No matter what they did, they could not get her to leave when they wanted her to or get across that they did not appreciate her unannounced visits. She was completely impervious to their presence. (It was really kind of sad.) One time I went over there and we discovered that she had showed up while we were gone. On a hunch, we put on _Plague Mass_. She became visibly uncomfortable, said something like "What's that horrible screeching", got in her car, and left. We immediately dubbed _Plague Mass_ "the CD of Dispel Ethel" and took it off before _we_ felt like we had to leave the house. Later that same friend would occasionally use it to shoo people out of his office when he was busy. I have it back now, but I don't play it much. ------------------------------ From: ! Date: Thu, 28 Dec 1995 09:35:45 -0500 (EST) Subject: Putting the Nail in the Coffin o' 1995 This here is by way of being a very belated but very open invitation to any ecto-folk, fegmaniax, loud-fans, darlisters, fumblers, anificianados, and/or fookfaces (whew!) who are a) in or near Washington DC on 12/31/95 and b) interested in attending or crashing a fairly large/raucous New Year's Eve gathering to c) do so. The party is in a townhouse in NW DC. You do not want to park a Ferrari in our neighborhood, but most less ostentatious vehicles should be okay. Ample food and drink will be available, as will some sort of facilities for toddlers (3 toddler attendees are already confirmed). Limited crash space is also available. We're mostly 20-something/30-something, if that's relevant. E-mail me for more info, directions, etc. if you think you might be interested. Hope to see some of you there! doug Apologies in advance to those of you who get this message multiple times, and especially to those of you who are "geographically challanged" __/-\__/-\__/-\__/-\__/-\__/-\__/-\__/-\__/-\__/-\__/-\__/-\__/-\__/-\ = ...nous devons cultiver notre jardin... = = INET:dmayowel@access.digex.net AOL:DougMhyphW Compu$erve:102432,355 = = visit the pathetic caverns! http://www.access.digex.net/~dmayowel = ------------------------------ From: MundoPax@aol.com Date: Thu, 28 Dec 1995 00:10:55 -0500 Subject: Re: ecto-digest V2 #317 Hi folks, Just wanted to say thanks for turning me on to so much great music since I joined the list. After approximately a year of listening, and reading, the CD's I'm playing over and over (other than Happy's) are Sam Phillips' (all three), and Spirit Of The West's. I don't understand why Sam Phillips and SOTW aren't bigger. I think their music has definite commercial appeal. Anyone have any news on either artist? Other than that, thanks for all the good sounds and good websites. HAPPY NEW YEAR TO ALL! May '96 bless you all with love, harmony and prosperity. Peace. - -- Marcel Kshensky ------------------------------ From: Neal Copperman Date: Wed, 27 Dec 1995 14:37:54 -0500 (EST) Subject: Diamanda, Laurie Anderson On Wed, 27 Dec 1995, Ariel Brennan wrote: > It's music! How scary can it be? ;> > > Okay, it can be pretty scarey. ;> > > ROFL! Come now, it can't be THAT weird... ;> Heh, I think you should run out and buy Plague Mass or Vena Cava or what's that one - Housewives with Steak Knives, or something like that. I'd love to be there to see your reaction. (Be sure to let us know if you decide to do that.) Anything but the Singer and the John Paul Jones disc. Then you'll see how scary music really can be. When I saw Diamanda a few years ago, on a half Singer/half Plague Mass show, I was stunned. It's probably the only music I've heard that picked me up and violently threw me against the wall of the auditorium. When she came out, naked from the waste up, covered in oil and illuminated by red light (appearing to be covered in blood), and opened her mouth and starting singing/shrieking, the music and voice echoed through my chest cavity. I really could feel it course through my body, causing my lungs to constrict and my heart to beat fast. > > Re: spoken/musical ectostuff > > But are her ALBUMS mainly spoken word? Because that's what I'm talking > about here. I know Anderson did one album full of stories or something, but > that was a special album, so it doesn't count. :P Actually, they pretty much are. (well, maybe more performance art than spoken word, but I'd say Angel Food sounds much like performance art too. Don't know what she's like live. Hey, has anyone seen Meryn Cadell live?) Anyway, for Laurie, starting with the readily available albums, you have Big Science Mister Heartbreak United States Live (4 discs) Home of the Brave Strange Angels Bright Red/Tightrope The Ugly One With The Jewels In Her Eyes For Strange Angels, she took voice lessons for the first time, and that is probably the first album you could really say she sings on most of. Personally, I think her speeking voice is more evocative than her singing voice, but the bulk of the first 4 discs are spoken word over (that is, on top of) music. But Laurie's speeking has always seemed incredibly musical to me. Ugly One is the dics of stories. The last two releases excited me more than anything she's done in ten years, and both were sort of a return to form of her earlier work. Reminiscent of it, but not exactly a step backwards. Ugly one is almost pure storytelling, and yet, it's not a far cry from any of her other albums. Hope everyone has a great New Year. I'm off to experience the pleasure of a Minneapolis winter in a few hours. Neal ------------------------------ From: Neal Copperman Date: Wed, 27 Dec 1995 14:20:24 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: Ah, the weekend's ectophillic acquisitions, plus! On Wed, 27 Dec 1995, Ariel Brennan wrote: > > It seems to me, and I've read it here before, that ecto-fare > >is not a particularly limiting category. > > Except it is. Ok, I'll admit that it's limiting, in that it certainly is a subset of music that is out there, but I think for many of us it's a larger subset than you include. Sure, female-singer-singwriter makes up the core of it, but it wanders all over the place, bringing in a tinge of country, experimental, rock, you name it. However, I don't want to get into an "is so" "is not" kind of discussion or a nitpicky semantics issue. > >You can frequently find either disc > >marked way down in the throwaway bins in used stores. At least, that was > > >true a year or so ago. I guess I haven't seen them as much recently. > > HMV had one copy of each, and they both cost $15, so I guess they're out of > those bins. ;> Actually, just because HMV, Tower, Sam Goody or anywhere else has them for $15 doesn't mean they aren't available in the cheap bins. Just three weaks ago I bought The Sound of Music by Pizzacato 5 and Jonatha Brooke's Plumb, each for $2. Ok, I was surprised too. But the fact that you can regularly find a disc used in the $3 to $5 range doesn't stop major stores from selling it at full price. (And probably shouldn't.) Neal ------------------------------ From: maeldun@i-2000.com (Michael Doyle) Date: Wed, 27 Dec 1995 20:38:44 -0500 Subject: Re: My Top 10 At 01:20 AM 12/27/95 -0500, Ariel Brennan wrote: > >Only 28? By the gods, how do you survive? ;) Mm-hmm. I expected someone to say as much... > I bought *125* discs this >year, and would've bought more, if I didn't have to save up several hundred >dollars for a tape recorder. Look, I budgeted myself for only 16 at the beginning of the year. For me, 28 is shameful excess! - - Mike Michael Doyle maeldun@i-2000.com =================================================================== "You sleep like a haiku: You're still; you move. It's that simple." - - C-Cat Trance ------------------------------ From: maeldun@i-2000.com (Michael Doyle) Date: Wed, 27 Dec 1995 20:39:39 -0500 Subject: Ars Poetica At 04:10 PM 12/26/95 -0600, Kerry White wrote: > >On Tue, 26 Dec 1995, Michael Doyle wrote: >> >> 1. Ars Poetica, (self-titled) >> A passionate, dreamy album that has become fully integrated into my heart. >> It is now one of my top 5 albums *ever*. >> > Tell me more! Howzabout several knowledgeable 'philes coming at it >from all sides? Ars Poetica sounds like Love Spirals Downward vectored in the direction of Rose Chronicles. The vocals are passionate, the music dreamy. The album closes with two ambient sound collages of which I didn't think much at first, but now I accept and enjoy them as a fitting conclusion. One of my favorite tracks on the album begins with a rumbling pseudo-storm that shakes the floor at proper volumes. I love its title, too: "More Days Missing Again." I raved about this thing (and provoked some Rose Chronicles fans :) ) back in July or August. I was worried then that the CD would wear thin on me, but, man, it still gives me chills when I hear Stephanie Wicker's voice calling on the first track, appropriately entitled, "Trap"... - - Mike Michael Doyle maeldun@i-2000.com =================================================================== "You sleep like a haiku: You're still; you move. It's that simple." - - C-Cat Trance ------------------------------ From: Paul Cohen Date: Thu, 28 Dec 1995 18:29:58 -0500 Subject: Re: Top 10 List and random responses > terrific concert. The first disc of a projected trilogy -- I am both > eagerly awaiting and dreading what might come next. (That said, I > think I *like* "The Buddha of Suburbia" better, and whished they'd > released it here.) I believe "The Buddha of Suburbia" is finally set to be released here early in '96. ____Paul Cohen______________King of Prussia, PA___ ____pmcohen@netaxs.com___http://atonce.com/pmc/___ ------------------------------ From: "Stuart P. Myerburg" Date: Thu, 28 Dec 1995 19:02:04 -0500 (EST) Subject: Re: Top 10 List and random responses Doug wondered: > What is this "Bhudda" thing, please? Is it related to the Hanif > Kureishi novel of the same name?? Yes. It was a BBC (?) production of the novel. David Bowie did the soundtrack, which was not available in the US until this year. Stuart ------------------------------ From: Kerry White Date: Thu, 28 Dec 1995 20:35:54 -0600 (CST) Subject: re: Jewel Hello, With all the posts lately, this got lost in the crowd: I have Rare Gems: Jewel Rarities and find it merely ok. I have Jewel live on Conan doing a song from Pieces(?) and like it alot. The question is: is Pieces more like that song on Conan, or is it more folkie? Except for KaTe, all the cds I bought this year seem to be Ecto-inspired! And there seems to be more to get yet, darn you all(and my weakness)!! KrW Commit senseless acts of kindness, and random acts of beauty! ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V2 #321 ************************** ======================================================================== Please send any questions or comments about the list to ecto-owner@nsmx.rutgers.edu