From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V4 #4 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Monday, January 5 1998 Volume 04 : Number 004 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Today's your birthday, friend... [matthewm (Mike Matthews)] 18 cd's [basil@naxs.com (Brad Hutchinson)] Red hand in hand [charleydarbo ] Top 10 1997 [Jack Sutton ] Re: NYC - Local Interest Only - Very Long [jjh969@juno.com] More lists [Neal Copperman ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sun, 4 Jan 1998 03:00:13 -0500 From: matthewm (Mike Matthews) Subject: Today's your birthday, friend... i*i*i*i*i*i i*i*i*i*i*i *************** *****HAPPY********* **************BIRTHDAY********* *************************************************** *************************************************************************** ******************* John Sandoval (SANDOVAL@stsci.edu) ******************** *************************************************************************** -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- John Sandoval Wed January 04 1967 Capricorn Paul Cohen Tue January 05 1954 Capricorn Tony Garrity Mon January 08 1962 Pool of Life Greg Bossert Tue January 09 1962 OfTheTimes Troy J. Shadbolt Thu January 14 1971 Capricorn Chris Sampson Wed January 15 1964 Void where prohibited Dennis G Parslow Fri January 17 1964 ...of the Saint Ross Alford Thu January 17 1957 Positive Nancy Whitney Mon January 19 1959 slippery when wet Sarah Noelle Pratt Ferguson Tue January 20 1970 Seanympf-Aquarius Terry Partis Sun January 22 1933 Rocker Sarah McLachlan Sun January 28 1968 Aquarius Ilka Heber Mon February 01 1965 Mermaid Bob Lovejoy Sun February 02 1947 Aquarius Diane Burke Sat February 02 1963 slow children Timothy S. Devine Tue February 03 1970 Aquarius Stephen Thomas Fri February 04 1966 Aquarius - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 4 Jan 1998 09:50:20 -0500 From: basil@naxs.com (Brad Hutchinson) Subject: 18 cd's Well the drought (spelled correctly this time) is really over! For the holiday we got money and cd's. The money became more cd's and the haul has been wonderful. I've been in ecto-heaven since we began opening the square boxes. The baby, Zoe, got too many toys that make noise including one where she can punch buttons and make a song, but I guess they're her form of cd's. The weirdest toy she got was a Big Bird doll that talks--he (or she?) has light sensors in her/his eyes and whenever light shifts it proclaims "peek a boo"--it also has a demonic laugh that frightens my brother. . . Ok--the cd's: Ingrid Karklins--Red Hand--wowowowowowowow--the packaging is really really cool and the music is wonderful. I _like_ the bass--it kind of reminds me of Jaco Pastorius at the end of his life (like on Joni Mitchell's _Shadows and Light_). I'm so impressed with the whole thing that we ordered _Anima Mundi_ which is also fantastic. And we've also got _Darker Passion_ is that the title? Anyway, they're all HEAVEN SENT MUSICS! Veda Hille--_Path of a Body_ and _Women in (e)motion_. They're not as soul grabbing as _Spine_ yet but they're growing on me like kudzu. I'm so glad that there is a new one out there so I can still wait for more. Renaissance _Ashes are Burning_--this one was one of my favorites in high school and it is still powerful for me. I love the flow of the music and the old feel of the lyrics. With some early Christmas money, I bought Katell Keinneg's _Jet_. It has been eclipsed by the "newer" cd's but I still like it. The song "Leonore" caught me and made me run to my _Women in the Surrealist Movement_ to look at some of her paintings. I actually have passed her over the many times I've read/looked at this book. The feel of the paintings fit the music really well. Another wow album for me. I hope it comes back to me later with the power it had when I first snatched it (on Neile's advice) from the used bin at the local record shop. My only problem with the cd is that she doesn't pronounce "Veni Vedi Vici" correctly. I guess I should be glad she put latin on the cd, though. Tonight I ran off some folks who were visiting by playing the new Portishead. Her voice and the dark weavings of the musics have me spell bound even more than _Dummy_. I suspect this is one I'll have to listen to alone. Jill likes it but says it could get tiresome. I'll have to see if it gets that way for _me_! Another new cd is _"ghostyhead"_ by Rickie Lee Jones. Another good one. I hope it grows on me more. I like it but haven't been caught by any particular song yet. I am amazed, however, that her voice works so well with the music. Who'd a thunk it? The last two "ecto" cd's are Mari Boine Persen's _Gulla Gulla_ and Christine Collister's _Live_ both of which I've only played once. They will have to be for later. The other new cd's are: Janice Joplin's _Pearl_ to replace the scratchy lp. The Dead's first live album, Morphine's _B sides and otherwise_, John Hartford's _Aereo-plane_ (finally released on cd), The Upsetter collection, Black Uhuru's _Guess Who's Coming to Dinner_ (which, if any of you like reggae, is the cd Jill and I have been hoping was out there for a long time--nice fresh regaee sound), Hmm, that's not all of them. Oh yeah, The Soft Boys _Can of Bees_. It's always fun to have new Robyn,even if it is really old Robyn. Oh yeah, one is Abra Moore's _Strangest Places_ which is catchy but hasn't held up in the three weeks or so I've had it. It'll be good car music though. I'm a little guilty feeling about Veda Hille's _Path of a body_ since the booklet asks that one not tape the cd. I have to do it to listen to it in my car. That's where I get to "learn" music the best. So I've already broken the rule and my catholic upbringing is haunting my sleep. Does this mean I'll have to be a cassette copy? And that is that. School starts again Monday. I'll probably miss this time but it'll also be nice to see my kids again. Take care all, brad np Ingrid Karklins _Red Hand_ nr Anne Beattie's new one _My life starring. . . " which is much better than the last one! Accuracy of observation is the equivalent of accuracy of thinking. - --Wallace Stevens brad hutchinson: basil@naxs.com ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 04 Jan 1998 10:33:03 +0000 From: charleydarbo Subject: Red hand in hand Last night, after a really good day spent turning a casual ex-workplace acquaintance into a really close, important, loving friendship, I came home to find _Red_Hand_ in my mail. As a graphic designer who's designed a couple of CD packages, I'm shamed and astounded. What a beautiful use of complex simplicity. It really adds to the value this disc holds for me to feel the attention, the _love,_ that seems just as important to this package as the glue that holds the papers together. The music, of course, has held all my attention since I opened (carefully, slowly; lingering) the package. I'm not ready to wirte about the music yet, but neither am I ready to click off the 'repeat all' button. I'm happy to see Thor is still with Ingrid: his drumming was, for me, a very important part of the performance I saw at Lounge Ax a few years ago. I've put in my order for two more copies of _Red_Hand_: eventually all my friends will own one. - --charleydarbo n.p.: Ingrid Karklins: _Red_Hand_ n.r.: Oliver Sacks: _The_Island_of_the_Colorblind_ Rick Bass: _The_Book_of_Yaak_ ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 04 Jan 1998 08:58:31 From: Jack Sutton Subject: Top 10 1997 So much music, so little time. I remember a few years back, I don’t think I could have made that statement. Anyway, it was another superb year for music and below are my top 1997 picks in no particular order. Loreena McKenitt "Book of Secrets" The combination of Loreena's hauntenly beautiful voice and the weaving of Eastern, Indian, and Celtic musical structure make this a masterful creation. I'm particularly fond of her use of droning instruments and the repetative bluesy phrasing of these instruments throughout a piece. Her ability to spark the connection between seemenly divergent musical forms reminds me of some Sheila Chandra experimentations into that realm. For me, this is a most enjoyable album. Ingrid Karklins-"Red Hand" Since Darker Passion and Anima Mundi, my expectations of Ingrid's music are of the highest standards, and Red Hand even surpasses those lofty benchmarks. To say Ingrid is unique is a gross understatemnent, I can only set aside a special catagory for her alone. Her musical foundation is broad, but not based on the common ground of western pop music. I think she is some sort of manifestation of Perkon, the thunder god, (introduced to me thru "Kas Dimd") dark, unpredictable, exciting, scary, and very powerful. Her music brings out all those elements in me, that's why my favorite listening scenarios are cold wet and stormy. Even when it's sunny out side, just closing my eyes while listening to Ingrid's music summons the thundering of Perkon. Jennifer Berezan-"Refuge" Jennifer is another artist that through my past experience with such as "Borderlines", and "She Carries Me" I get very excited about hearing new material. "Refuge" is everything I expected and more. Besides being a superb singer songwriter and musician, I'm sure Jennifer is a perfectionist because every detail of her work is attended to with the same care and feeling throughout. You get the sense that a lot of time, effort, blood and guts goes into each song before it's declared a finished product. When you hear music you like, you just get an inner good feeling glow generated by the music. Refuge does that for me, and analysis as to why is a pretty non sensible exercise, as Elvis once said "It just moves me man". Josie Kruezer-"Hot Rod Girl" All right, I have to admit I'm a closet rockabillyist. I do a good job of keeping it secret, but sometimes I hear something that just rips my closet doors off. "Hot Rod Girl" is just plane fun. Josie has that rockabilly look, but more important, she is a real rockabilly, not a nostalgic copy kat lets be cute rockabilly. The energy is just there, she's tapped into the ancient rockabilly art from, and she rocks. All the songs are her originals, and her backing band is right fine. Some one asked me "but do you really like that voice?" I don't know where that voice comes from, but it's the soul of rockabilly pure and simple. Louise Taylor-"Ride" She has all the ingredients of a great singer songwriter and it comes together on "Ride", her 3rd release. She draws you in with splendid songwriting, and to make sure you stay put, weaves in beautiful rhythm and melody, on top of superb arrangements and musicians. Every cut is a gem, and I believe she is right at the top of the list of truly gifted, creative singer songwriters. Rory Block "Gone Woman Blues" Rory is one of the finest slide guitarist around and her interpretation of the old Delta Blues greats such as Son House, Robert Johnson, and Skip James is fully revealed on this great album. Patty Larkin "Perishable Fruit" So everything she does is great, what's the big surprise about "Perishable Fruit"? You would think that after putting out so many good albums, she would miss the mark eventually, not a chance. Perishable Fruit is an example of what's possible from an artist that is so richly endowed with the characteristics that make for an exceptional singer songwriter. Laura Kemp-"Cordoroy" When I first heard "Volcano" several years ago, I got the same impression as I do now when listening to Corduroy, "wow, what a nice solid collection of songs". The question to myself is why I'm I so surprised this time around when I’m familiar with her previous work. I don't know, but Laura kind of creeps up on you and bam, slaps you right in the face with great songwriting, melodies, and arrangements. What really solidifies this album is the personal glimpse she allows us into her life, through her honest, open deeply personal song writing. Nanci Griffith--"Blue Roses From The Moons" I think most people familiar with Nanci Griffith will agree, she is truly a legend and her latest effort "Blue Roses From The Moons" is just another example of her creative powers. The funniest thing is when I first heard "Battleground" on the radio, I didn’t recognize Nanci's voice (I think she has one of the most unique voices in music). Afterwards, I was surprised that it was Nanci, later, I could not imagine how I didn’t recognize her voice. Maybe the fact that it was a Nick Lowe song threw me. I feel Nanci is one of the greatest songwriters around, she has another rather uncommon talent of getting into anthers songwriters psyche through her interpretation of their work. Mississippi Fred McDowell-- “The First Recordings” This recording is part of a series of releases by Rounder Records from the master field tapes of Alan Lomax. Thank God for Alan Lomax, he and his son were called to a Holy mission years ago that generations to come will be grateful. I'm really impressed with the sound quality of this recording, it far exceeds anything I could imagine considering the year it was created, 1952 and in the field to boot. I'm just mesmerized by slide guitar wailing in those blusey open tunings and Mr. McDowell was a master at the art. Every cut is just a joy to listen to and captures a great cross section of this artist capabilities. I think for anyone that is a lover of blues slide guitar, there is no question, this recording is a must. Biggest disappointment of 1997--Not having enough time to listen to all the great Ecto and other music floating around out there. Jack Sutton Harmony Ridge Music http://www.rahul.net/hrmusic/ ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 4 Jan 1998 13:14:45 -0500 From: jjh969@juno.com Subject: Re: NYC - Local Interest Only - Very Long Greg responded to my post re: >> Gravikords, Whirlies and Pyrophones: >> Contemporary Experimental Instruments >> and Their Inventors >This should be very cool -- i encourage folks with access to check it >out. Lincoln Center here in NY has been doing something in a somewhat related vein for the last couple of summers. They've been sponsoring free outdoor concerts and exhibits for home-made instruments. After the shows, the makers encourage the audience to participate by fabricating music making devices with household refuse and odds and ends. Spackle bucket, tin can percussion, vacuum hose wind chimes, that kind of thing. It's always one of the more fun parts of their outdoor free "on the plaza" programs. John ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 4 Jan 1998 17:59:09 -0500 (EST) From: Neal Copperman Subject: More lists For me, the music experience is amplified by seeing performers live. The added energy, personal interaction, and the fact that I can't really do anything else but pay attention (which I do so poorly at home), make a single live performance hit home more than multiple listens to an album. And later, the album will frequently make more sense or seem more apealing to me. So, as usual, my list is the performers I was most into this year, regardless of when their material was released, so long as I aquired it between Octobers. (I go back to October 96 sort of arbitrarily, but lots of times what I bought in that time frame hadn't sunk in for the previous years lists. Hell, it might not have sunk in yet! [assuming I've even listened to it]) The clear winner for me this year was CINDY LEE BERRYHILL. It's not like I was new to Cindy Lee's music or seeing her live, but this year we just crossed paths so many times and the music was always stunning. I got an intro to the new music when she and Elizabeth Hummel passed through Virginia in February, which got me really enthusiastic for my 10 weeks in San Deigo. Like 94, when I fixated on Jewel in the coffeehouses, I was out every week seeing all the great local performers, and the mix of CLB, EH, Joy Eden Harrison, Lisa Sanders, Steve Poltz and Gregory Page in such intimate settings all add up to this top spot. Plus, a Cindy Lee show is guaranteed unpredictability. Highlights include mixing Wild Thing into Jane & John - with go-go dancers, bringing up a table full of birthday revelers to bang on spoons while she sang her childhood ode to Pompeii, the impromptu Safety Rose, composed on the spot when she received a plastic wrapped rose, the frighteningly silly I Like To Eat song that she composed in her sleep (and won a grammy for there too), and the truly unsettling opening set of her Bel Air Living Room show, where she played wildly intense over 10 minute versions of Jane & John and Heat (a very strange way to open a show). I picked up the old Naked Movie Star and the recent Escape From Marysville, the latter being a real surprise for me, as it nailed down songs, with arrangements, that I'd seen performed differently week after week. Those and miriad bootleg tapes lived in my listening world more than anything else this year. Veda Hille - Spine, Women in (E)motion I got Spine at the tail end of last year, and new immediately that the word on ecto was certainly on target. However, it was the live Women in (E)motion tape and older sampler tapes (thanks Neile) that lived in my car all summer. Amazing stuff, and I'm dying for the day I finally get to see Veda live. (And Women in (E)motion on CD is en route to my house now, if A&B SOunds ever sends out my order.) Lisa Cerbone - Mercy Another end of 96 release, but one that just keeps going and going. Then again, with the chance to see Lisa pretty much every month, I get a fresh dose of the tunes even if I don't pull out the CD. While I enjoyed the first album, the growth evident on this one is remarcable. The songs are even more detailed vignettes, but the real news is the music. The simpler arrangements have been fleshed out to something more evocative and denser, but not cluttered. The music on the first album seemed more like background, while this music fully compliments and expands on the story-songs. June Tabor - Aleyn (97), Singing the Storm (with Savourna Stevenson and Danny Thompson, 96) I saw June live for the first time this year, which was also my first exposure to the music on Aleyn, and was completely bowled over. Her voice has always been clear and beautiful, but I had no idea it would be so poignant and emotional live. I think the songs on Aleyn are both the best selections and performances on any of her albums I've heard, and only suffer in comparison to how incredible they were live. I picked up Singing the Storm since I like June and Danny Thompson seems to be one of the most reliable bass player out there. I had no clue who Savourna Stevenson was, or what she played, only that she was credited with writing all the music. Well, she plays harp, and the disc has instrumental tracks as well as long, elaborate traditional story-songs (along the lines of Loreena's Bonny Swans). A very nice surprise. Richard Thompson - 2 Letter Words, Live in Wembley, (12/96) Rumour and Sigh, Industry It was a good year for fleshing out my Richard Thompson collection. I saw him a few months ago, and while he always puts on a good show, this one didn't really stand out in any way. However, the two official boots I bought in December of 96 do. Live in Wembley (with Danny Thompson) is good, but 2 Letter Words may be one of the best live albums I own. Two discs, with band and solo, it captures all the things that can go right with a Richard Thompson concert - humour, storytelling and bottomless bitterness. Radiohead - OK Computer So it's all over every critics lists, but I still like it lots. It's weird, dense, catchy and curious. Every listen opens up a new door and leads in a slightly different direction. I think it's one I'll be puzzling over for years. Gavin Bryars - Jesus Blood Never Fail Me I actually bought this at a Lisa Cerbone concert at Phantasmagoria at the end of 96, shortly after seeing it on a list of overlooked albums of the decade. Gavin Bryars builds a shifting layers over a loop of an old bum singing a hymn. Odd as it sounds, it really works, from the plaintive, hopeful, broken original voice through the 20 minute fade-in of multiple instruments, which keep dropping out to be replaced by other voices. Tom Waits picks up the tune about 40 minutes down the road, which is a nice touch (though not exactly necessary). (Maybe this is the year for a re-release of Bryars' Sinking of the Titanic disc?) R.E.M - New Adventures in Hi-Fi Got this late in 96 too, but for some reason I've been listening to it a lot lately. I'm always surprised at how much I like the later R.E.M. albums a year after they are released (typically a lot more than I like them when I buy them). Vartinna - Kokko and older stuff I taped. Got heavy into Vartinna for a few months when they passed through town. I listened to these a lot, and then suddenly stopped, but they were a blast live, and I think the albums will always perk me up whenever I pull them out. - ------------- Things I should have listened to more, and probably would like as well as any of the above. Lori Carson - Everything I Touch Runs Wild, Where It Goes I instantly fell for Where It Goes, an album full of the most miserable tunes I'd heard in a while. Wild didn't hit me with the same immediate impact, and somehow hasn't wandered back into my CD player, though I fully expect about 3 more spins and I will be totally enamoured with it. And Lori managed to fill a bar with people sitting on the floor at her feet, in silent adoration, as she layed her music upon us. It didn't all work, but when it did, it was as powerful as anything else I heard this year. Beth Orton - Trailer Park I listened to a sampler tape (thanks Jeff) where the tunes from Trailer Park jumped out at me. But in my usual haphazard way, I bought it and put it away with hardly a listen. When it's time comes, I suspect very good things. - ------------------------- Bought in the last few weeks, so I can't swear to their staying power, but they'll probably top next years list: Ingrid Karklins - Red Hand Jane Siberry - Child Amy Rigby - Diary of a Mod Housewife - ------------- Live concerts by people who didn't make the list, but were still great live. Dar WIlliams/Richard Shindell - Jan 97, Birchmere Plus Richard solo in Feb at Folkal Point A brilliant show early in the year by a solo Dar with Richard opening was fantastic. She wow'ed my parents and the friend I brought thought it was the best concert she'd ever seen (replacing the Nields show I dragged her to last year). The album disappoints me though, with mediocre arrangements that do nothing to highlight the lyrical charms of the songs, and even a few of the songs disappointed from that side too. Solo accoustic What Do You Hear In These Sounds? was much more powerful than the album version. Richard did a great live set in the tiny Folkal Point. Somehow I haven't gotten his new disc yet, but I think I will be fixing that pretty soon. Dar's post-album solo show, a few weeks ago in Annapolis, was ok, but didn't move me the same way as the earlier show did. Jane Siberry's holiday show garnered another best concert I've ever been to review from my (different) companion, and I thought it was pretty wonderful myself, however her Teenager show at the beginning of the year didn't do much for me. Barenaked Ladies - Bohagers, Baltimore These guys improvise as well as Cindy Lee. One of the most amusing and entertaining shows I saw all year. Never have heard one of their albums though. Muzsikas - A virtuoso showcase for some pretty bizarre instruments. Even better than last years show. Project Lo - Their Baltimore show was stunning, with lyrical work by Cathryn Lin and some brilliant moments from Happy. The Phantasmagoria show, plagued with sound problems and not mixed to my liking, was still fun, but not particularly moving. There were also some great Happy moments at the Tin Angel this year too. I haven't found much need to listen to the Project Lo disc though. Neal np: Vyktoria Pratt Keating - The Guardian at Noon ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V4 #4 ************************