From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V10 #238 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Friday, August 27 2004 Volume 10 : Number 238 Today's Subjects: ----------------- Yamagata and Holland? [neal copperman ] Today's your birthday, friend... [Mike Matthews ] Re: vocal twins [Paul Schreiber ] bye, bye, war against silence [Adam K ] Re: Yamagata and Holland? [raven@igc.org] Re: bye, bye, war against silence [Ethan Straffin ] Re: Yamagata and Holland? [Ellen Rawson ] diamanda galas tour dates! [fingerpuppets ] A short guide to kiwi music, plus questions for aussies [Sander ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Wed, 25 Aug 2004 23:33:17 -0600 From: neal copperman Subject: Yamagata and Holland? What's the lowdown on Rachael Yamagata? I noticed that she was touring the country with Tom McRae opening (whose first album totally blew me away). I'd never heard of her, but have been listening to some samples on her web site. Sort of a bluesy piano girl. Sounds kind of intriguing. Last night I saw Jolie Holland. She fronted a trio and was pretty interesting. She opened with a Freakwater cover, which put her heavy into twang zone. I was a bit put off by that, but as the set went on, the twang factor was slowly replaced by an intriguing, jazzy feel. Much of the time she stayed at a midpoint of the two, occasionally calling to mind a cross between Gillian Welch and Mazzy Star. I guess her song The Littlest Bird is getting a lot of local airplay. I knew it when I heard it and assumed it was a cover, but I was told that was her claim to fame. It's a great little song. I think what she put me most in mind of was The Be Good Tanyas, but that's mostly in vibe, as her voice is much fuller then the Tanyas. I've given a quick listen to her new CD - escondida, and it seems to mirror the concert pretty well. Occasionally it wanders into somewhat disturbing heavy twang zone, but most of the time I thought it was a great, jazzy ambient mix with some very cool arrangements. Should be interesting for more listens. neal np: Rachael Yamagata samples ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2004 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********* *************************************************** *************************************************************************** ********************** Don Gibson (no Email address) ********************** *************************************************************************** -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Don Gibson Wed August 26 1959 Virgo Marcel Rijs Mon August 31 1970 A rose growing old Meredith Tarr Wed September 01 1971 Virgo Scott Zimmerman Mon September 04 1972 Virgo Mike Mendelson Fri September 04 1964 Virgo Richard Dean Wed September 06 1967 Virgo Jason Gordon Tue September 07 1976 monkey collector David Blank-Edelman Sat September 09 1967 Neon Holly Tominack Thu September 10 1970 Virgo Sharon Nichols Wed September 11 1963 As Above So Below Heather Russell September 11 Total Virgosity Karron Lynn Lane Tue September 14 1751 Ophelia Virgo Troy Wollenslegel Mon September 18 1972 Virgo Mark Frabotta Sun September 19 1965 Don't even THINK about parking here Joe Zitt Sat September 20 1958 Will Hack for CDs Ani DiFranco Wed September 23 1970 Virgo Lord Tyr Mon September 24 1979 Libran - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2004 00:05:42 -0700 From: Paul Schreiber Subject: Re: vocal twins Jason wrote: > Do you ever leave a cd in your player and then come back to it and > mistake the voice for someone else? I had Lindi in the car and could > have sworn that it was Sarah Slean's night bugs except I didnt > recognize any of the songs as Sarahs...and I was thinking that I liked > the cd a lot more than I liked night bugs... Whenever my iPod is on random shuffle, I mix up Kate Bush and Tori Amos. I only have one Kate album -- The Red Shoes. And Kristilyn Robertson sounds *a lot* like Lindi. Well, Taste of Forbidden Fruit-era Lindi. Paul shad 96c / uw cs 2001 / mac activist / fumbler / eda / headliner / navy-souper fan of / sophie b. / steve poltz / habs / bills / 49ers / "Well-behaved women seldom make history." --Laurel Thatcher Ulrich [demime 0.97c-p1 removed an attachment of type application/pkcs7-signature which had a name of smime.p7s] ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2004 09:03:33 +0100 From: Adam K Subject: bye, bye, war against silence I'd just like to add a typically belated tribute to glenn's site. We had our differences, but I always enjoyed his writing no matter how much I disagreed with it: I found it compelling, amusing and informative, and wished I'd visited his site more often. (Hey, anyone who loves Martin Briley's "Salt in my Tears" AND is an insomniac has my respect). Kudos, as well, for having the courage to move on. adam k. ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2004 01:52:22 -0700 From: raven@igc.org Subject: Re: Yamagata and Holland? At 10:33 PM 08/25/2004, neal copperman wrote: >What's the lowdown on Rachael Yamagata? I first heard her in Oct 2003, in fact I heard her at the same time I heard Elliott Smith had died... maybe that's why I did not mention her, because I was in such shock about Elliott for weeks. >I noticed that she was touring the country She will be touring again, hitting my area in Oct. >I'd never heard of her, but have been listening to some >samples on her web site. Several DJ's across the country have been playing her a lot, even before she had a full CD out, I think she has also been interviewed on WXPN or some similar program... I think several people here would like what she does. >Last night I saw Jolie Holland. She fronted a trio and was >pretty interesting. She opened with a Freakwater cover, which >put her heavy into twang zone. She had already left the Be Good Tanyas when I first saw them live (she was one of the original Tanyas), so I was not familiar with her, I've only heard her on WXPN but I liked what little I heard... would like to hear more... she has also moved from Canada to San Francisco. - -- John ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2004 02:07:33 -0700 From: Ethan Straffin Subject: Re: bye, bye, war against silence On Thursday, August 26, 2004, at 01:03 AM, Adam K wrote: > I'd just like to add a typically belated tribute to glenn's site. We > had our differences, but I always enjoyed his writing no matter how > much I disagreed with it: I found it compelling, amusing and > informative, and wished I'd visited his site more often. (Hey, anyone > who loves Martin Briley's "Salt in my Tears" Wow. Now THERE's a blast from the past. I've got that one on an eighties mix I made at one point. (IIRC, it falls between Robert Hazard -- or was it Peter Godwin? -- and Kim Carnes.) Ethan ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2004 02:03:51 -0700 (PDT) From: Ellen Rawson Subject: Re: Yamagata and Holland? - --- neal copperman wrote: > What's the lowdown on Rachael Yamagata? I noticed > that she was > touring the country with Tom McRae opening (whose > first album totally > blew me away). I'd never heard of her, but have > been listening to > some samples on her web site. Sort of a bluesy > piano girl. Sounds > kind of intriguing. I heard her on-line on WXPN; she was their artist of the week a couple of months ago. I went ahead and ordered the CD. Some parts of it I love; others I'm disappointed by, but it is her first release. Ellen ===== "Literature stops in 1100. After that, it's just books." - -- JRR Tolkien ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2004 14:34:30 -0400 From: fingerpuppets Subject: diamanda galas tour dates! just heard that diamanda galas' tour dates had been posted on her website . woo hoo! woj ____________________________________________________________________ Fri Sep 10 Portland, OR (US) Defixiones, Will and Testament Sun Sep 12 Portland, OR (US) La Serpenta Canta Portland Institute of Contemporary Art (PICA) http://www.pica.org/ (go to calendar / september for info) Part of the TBA Festival Tickets: - - Call PICA at 503.242.1419 - - Email pica@pica.org - - Visit PICA at 219 NW 12th Ave. 12 . 6 pm, Wednesday . Friday Wed Sep 22 Ann Arbor, MI (US) Defixiones, Will and Testament Michigan Theater 603 East Liberty Street 734.668.8397 michtheatr@aol.com http://www.michtheater.org Sat Sep 25 Chicago, IL (US) Defixiones, Will and Testament Park West 322 West Armitage 773-929-1322 http://www.ticketmaster.com/venue/32811 Tue Sep 28 St. Paul, MN (US) Defixiones, Will and Testament Fitzgerald Theater 10 East Exchange St 651-290-1221 fitzgerald@mpr.org www.fitzgeraldtheater.org Mon Oct 4 New York City (US) Defixiones, Will and Testament Symphony Space www.symphonyspace.org Thu Oct 14 Washington D.C. (US) Defixiones, Will and Testament Lisner Auditorium George Washington University 21st & H St 202-994-6800 http://www.gwu.edu/~lisner/ http://www.ticketmaster.com/venue/172067/ Tue Oct 19 Vancouver, BC (CA) Defixiones, Will and Testament Vogue Theatre 918 Granville St 604-331-7909 info@newmusic.org www.newmusic.org ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 27 Aug 2004 03:34:04 +0100 From: Sander Subject: A short guide to kiwi music, plus questions for aussies Hey folks, A couple of days ago I flew out of Auckland to Sydney, thus ending nearly ten months of backpacking through New Zealand, during which time I witnessed some of the most beautiful sights this small world has to offer. However, the land of the long white cloud has more to offer than just visual beauty. Given its relatively tiny population of 4 million souls, New Zealand has produced a stunning number of worthwhile artists. I'm sure I haven't discovered all of them, and many of these will of course already be known to most of you, but here's a short guide to such auditory beauty as I managed to track down. ANIKA MOA I distinctly remember sitting in the Te Anau YHA and hearing her album, "Thinking Room", playing. Something in her voice immediately grabbed me, and after a few songs, I walked up to the reception to ask who she was, and what her cd was called. A few months later I'd found myself a contract job to replenish my traveling funds, and this was one of my first purchases to celebrate. Yet in four or five listens to the album since then, I haven't yet succeeded in recalling why I thought she was all special. :/ Listening to her now, I think she's got a nice voice, but there's nothing which really seems to distinguish her anymore from so many almost too-poppy singer-songwriters out there. There's definitely _potential_ though ("Holding me High" and "Youthful" in particular seem to _almost_ touch me), and perhaps this not quite glowing recommendation will be enough to get someone else intrigued enough to give her a listen and rediscover for me what I heard that first time. BIC RUNGA Thanks to the wonders of the internet (and no thanks to Sony or Bic's several, all-crappy, websites), I got to listen to a couple of her songs the day before she had a concert in Auckland. Two days later I was the happy owner of all of her albums, tickets for her _next_ concert, and a warm and fuzzy feeling due to yesterday's concert, which I'd been able to attend due to some very welcome last-minute extra tickets. About a quarter of the songs on both "Drive" and "Beautiful Collision" are, to me, duds. (That's songs like "Swim" and "Election Night") I don't even bother to listen to them anymore, they just don't work. But everything else... Drool-worthy. Bic's voice is wonderfully smooth and perfect. Her rendition of "Ne Me Quitte Pas" (on her live album, as well as actually live) shows that to full effect, but it's present everywhere. And her songwriting capabilities are up to par as well - nothing really spectacular, but still... "something in the phrasing is quietly amazing." BROOKE FRASER I almost didn't buy her album, "What to do with daylight", for Brooke is being played to death on mainstream radio in New Zealand, which scares away the elitist in me. :P Strange to realize however, mainstream and good taste have not yet completely lost touch in New Zealand. Although many of her songs work only as forgettable, Norah Jones-like, background music, a few jewels like "Arithmetic" are just... beautiful. HAYLEY WESTENRA I actually got around to buying Hayley's latest album, "Pure" (the special edition), because of talk about it here on ecto a few months ago. That title, "Pure", perfectly describes her voice and her music in general. At times I find myself thinking that her music lacks heart, lacks warmth (particularly when comparing her cover of "The Mummers' Dance" with Loreena's version), but these thoughts never last for long, for the music still evokes very real moods, and just works. Beyond her very interesting covers, I think my favorite original (?) song would be "Dark Waltz", which title describes the song to near perfection. NEIL and TIM FINN One can't really get around the Finn brothers, even if they aren't exactly ecto fare. Of course, all that _I_ knew of them just a few months ago was "Weather with You." I rectified with a "best of" of Crowded House and a live album with some songs by Tim. And even though they're Not Female I very much plan on exploring more of their more recent work, for the songwriting is superb, and I don't exactly dislike their voices either. SHONA LAING If I remember the text in the booklet of "The Essential Shona Laing" album I picked up correctly, she's supposed to be something of a legend. Even though /before/ I only knew her from two songs Vickie once posted in the suspended in gaffa thread, as far as I'm now concerned, she deserves to be. I have no idea how to describe her voice (I mean, as should be obvious from the above, I have little experience in describing music in terms which work well, but with her I even more don't know.) :P It's not "beautiful", it's not spectacularly melodious or pure or anything. Yet, it's... powerful. It grabs you and makes you really listen. Highly recommended. TIM GUY Technically not a kiwi, but 'dem aussies have appropriated so many kiwi artists for themselves that I think it's only fair if I do the reverse. Tim was the opening act for both of the Bic Runga concerts I attended, and has an album out, "Blazey", which was produced by her. He's weird. At first glance Tim seems to be just another thirteen to a dozen guy with guitar, but then suddenly he opens all registers and goes "chooooo, choooooo" (as in the train sound), and you blink and tilt your head and start to really listen. Not the kind of music I usually prefer, but of the ten songs on the album, I've grown to _really like_ all ten. Remember his name if nothing else - I have the feeling we'll be hearing more from him. There. I hope someone out there found that informative or useful or something; showing that there's more to kiwiland than the pitiful one name currently shown in the guide if browsing by location. :) And at the very least it should serve to make the Flingers have some idea of what to expect from me at the next Fling. Anyhoo, as shortly mentioned before, right now, and for the next year, I'm in Oz. So, for the aussies on the list: recommend me some local names? I know Brunatex and Wendy Rule (who naturally enough will be heading off to the US just as I am planning to arrive in Melbourne - luckily I intend to hang around there for three months, so should still be able to catch a show by her after she's returned), but there must be more names? Also, are there any venues in Melbourne in particular which tend to showcase ecto-ish music? And any sites beyond ticketek to keep an eye on so as to find out about upcoming shows by touring big names? Thanks in advance, Sander ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 26 Aug 2004 23:52:59 -0500 From: "Southpaw" Subject: Do you AudioScrobbler? In January, I joined a website called AudioScrobbler. It's free and it keeps a database of music you listen to. It also suggests music to you, and lets you look at others listening habits. I've found it a fun and informative site. I've met a couple of great music fans through it, and have discovered some new artist as well! If anyone is interested, you can check it out at www.audioscrobbler.com. They have support for several different media players on several different operating systems. You can check out my profile here: http://www.audioscrobbler.com/user/Southpaw/ Is anyone here already a member? Let me know, I'd love to add you to my network! Wade ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V10 #238 ***************************