From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V12 #186 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Sunday, July 16 2006 Volume 12 : Number 186 To unsubscribe: e-mail ecto-digest-request@smoe.org and put the word unsubscribe in the message body. Today's Subjects: ----------------- Re: Serious female singers harder to find on the charts [Michael HH Subject: Re: Serious female singers harder to find on the charts On 14 Jul 2006, at 22:55, ecto-digest wrote: > However, I think we have to acknowledge that the female > singer-songwriters > whose music we most appreciate are terribly maligned and pathologized > by the > critical mainstream. The praise bestowed upon metaphorical > phallus-stroking > male rock guitarists at the expense of more female-associated forms of > music, as typified by such "goings on on the top" as the anti-Lilith > backlash, is a product of patriarchal power and inequalities and > something > we absolutely need to take seriously. Absolutely. This I would have thought was one of the major tenets of Ecto.!! What else could define ecto - especially as some consider the talents of Jeff Buckley and Peter Gabriel to be somewhat included in this genre? The only defining curriculum I can find is the liberated 'true' female soul. Not liberation as in 'women's lib' (the counter reaction to men) but liberation, as in the true expression of the feminine in both the female and male sex. And how powerful it truly is. How it is the TRULY creative force. How it really does NOT submit to the masculine. (The egg draws the sperm to it - then allows only one in and shuts the others out. Unlike the perception of the aggressive sperms charging at the egg and penetrating it.) This must be rather daunting and difficult for those male-mind orientated controllers of the industry - those who choose talent by the reaction to the blood flow in their penises. (Sorry, but it is true). Case in point: Fiona Apple. She is beautiful/young looking and must be considered a babe by the industry. One problem tho, she can be aggressive, angry and intelligent. Whoops. And Happy. Not a 'babe' by Industry standards - does not look like she really tries. ("If I have to be pretty to be liked, then I think I'm dead in the water") But still 'attractive'. So, okay, but what is with this low voice singing? Can't have any of that. Not a turn on to the males in control. Confusing. (Gets dropped from Record Company because they don't know 'what' she is....) And recently, I was reading all of Kate's quotes through the years on Gaffa. Interested especially in the very early years - confounded by her ease of success. Suddenly aware of how instrumental her looks were probably to getting her record contract. (Not to David Gilmour, but the actual signing at EMI) It occurred to me that her talent was obvious, but her innocent yet sexy looks/sexy songs probably played a huge part in her signing. Also cynically, I wondered if EMI was truly waiting for her to 'be ready' (the 2-3 year wait for her first album) or whether they were waiting for her to be 'legal' - so they could lust in cooperation with the law. (Remember the famous poster with the breasts? Kate seemed so innocent about it but I'm sure the record company wasn't). Am I being too cynical? Something has to explain the extreme ease of success for Kate - I have known many other very talented female singer/songwriters who have incredible difficulty in getting/maintaining a contract. Just a theory here - I do recognize Kate's extreme talent. But one wonders if she and Madonna had presented their more mature/aggressive (masculine?) works/persona at the early point of their career would they have gotten anywhere at all? Or did the male sex drive open the door? Paula Cole. When she had her baby and a lower selling album (spiritually based album, no hit about 'Cowboys') - a top executive walked past her in the hallway and quipped 'Hope you are going to write another hit - hope you are not going to write about motherhood' (or words similar to that - can't find the quote) From Paula: "It's harder than ever to penetrate radio; to hear fresh, original and inspired music on the airwaves. People are so confused. They use their eyes and not their ears (as made evident by the success of Jennifer Lopez, Britney, Kylie Minogue etc.) Rolling Stone's managing editor of 20 years was replaced by the former manager of FHM, a tarty english gentleman's magazine that featured Maxim-like covers. Does that mean no more female artists of integrity can be on the cover of Rolling Stone with their clothes on? We'll see... Maybe people will really get sick of the corporate attitude that has dominated music to politics... maybe people will start listening to the independent stations and registering to vote and caring and unifying... maybe we can change our world. Step by step. Little by little" Hope Im not going over the deep end here. But it is something that I've been thinking about for years - and I would expect this issue to resonate and be of concern to Ecto members. The internet and the weakening of the corporate control of music distribution should be a good thing - or is it? The patriarchy lives in peoples minds - it is an attitude - out of balance - anti spiritual. Is is getting better or worse for ecto-style artists? Has the internet made any difference? Do the 'charts' really matter anyway? cheers Michael. ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2006 15:26:16 -0700 (PDT) From: "Xenu's Sister" Subject: suspended-in-gaffa.com down temporarily (I hope) Everything I had on suspended-in-gaffa.com is unavailable right now. That included a lot of image files on MySpace (for Happy's account, the /gaffashow account, and the /equipoise account), and the entire Suspended In Gaffa web site. Crap. Ain't technology grand? Ah, I love it anyway. It's funny, I'm on a kick of reading books about the history of computers and the Internet (Hackers, Soul of a New Machine, Fire In The Valley, Cuckoo's Egg, Where Wizards Stay Up Late and Dealers of Lightening) and none of those guys (and unfortunately, there *were* all guys) could ever have imagined the computers and net of today. They all certainly understood crashed servers and downtime though. The more things change, the more they stay the same. Vickie - -+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ Music, all I hear is music, guaranteed to please... Happy's MySpace profile: http://www.myspace.com/happyrhodes Happy Rhodes song samples and rarities: http://wretchawry.com - -+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+-+ ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 15 Jul 2006 21:29:39 -0500 From: "robert bristow-johnson" Subject: Re: Serious female singers harder to find on the charts > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Michael HH" > To: ecto@smoe.org > Subject: Re: Serious female singers harder to find on the charts > Date: Mon, 15 Jul 1996 14:52:57 -0700 > ... > > And Happy. Not a 'babe' by Industry standards - does not look like she > really tries. ("If I have to be pretty to be liked, then I think I'm > dead in the water") But still 'attractive'. So, okay, but what is with > this low voice singing? Can't have any of that. Not a turn on to the > males in control. Confusing. (Gets dropped from Record Company because > they don't know 'what' she is....) admittedly did not read enough to be sure that Michael is not fecitious (assuming he's not) but my attitude (from a straight and married male with kids) is that the "males in control" can have it (images of Alexander Haig in White House saying "i'm in control here"). they've been paid in full. there are a lot better things in life. - -- r b-j rbj@audioimagination.com "Imagination is more important than knowledge." ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V12 #186 ***************************