From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V12 #263 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Wednesday, October 4 2006 Volume 12 : Number 263 To unsubscribe: e-mail ecto-digest-request@smoe.org and put the word unsubscribe in the message body. Today's Subjects: ----------------- Re: ecto-digest V12 #262 ["Tom Neff" ] **MPress Records' "New Arrivals" Extends Deadline to 10/05!** [SpiritWe@a] Re: Charlotte Martin, Emilie Autumn, P C Hodgell [wojbearpig Subject: Re: ecto-digest V12 #262 Gosh I never write to Ecto any more, but Jane/Issa just sent out the following YouTube links which have made me crow with delight tonight. Check them out. - --------------------------------------- Eric Ranes did some fun movies of Jane when she was in Montreal on tour 2005 YOU CAN'T JUDGE A BOOK (almost Issa) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=A8bqe_l4dqU THE LOBBY (more Jane than Issa) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UW_CLX6C2l4 TOOTIE Concerto (almost Issa) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuFuQXbUMIo - - - - AN ANGEL STEPPED DOWN http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PuFuQXbUMIo TEMPLE http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Vp-6MOZINeA BEAUTY TRAIN trailer http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6iY2Sm0_lkM MIMI ON THE BEACH http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Pvcr4i3o-o k.d. lang's medley video for 'Hymns of the 49th Parallel' (she sings part of 'Love Is Everything' http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5NRIZ30b608 LOVE IS EVERYTHING http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5Pvcr4i3o-o ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Oct 2006 05:34:56 EDT From: SpiritWe@aol.com Subject: **MPress Records' "New Arrivals" Extends Deadline to 10/05!** FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE! MPress Records To Release Vol. 2 of "New Arrivals" Indie Compilation Series (Artist Submissions Deadline Extended To October 5th!) AUGUST 28, 2006 b New York, NY - MPress Records, a nationally distributed label founded a decade ago by 2005 Independent Music Award Winner Rachael Sage, has begun production on "New Arrivals: Volume 2" b the second in a series of rising artist/charity compilations. Vol. 1 was released this past February to retailers nationwide, and raised funds for Gulf Coast Recovery; 100% of all proceeds from Vol. 2 will benefit World Hunger Year (www.worldhungeryear.org). "New Arrivals" is a compilation project aimed at increasing exposure for exceptional self-released material. As such, artists will receive free marketing to MPress contacts (i.e. Radio, Press and Internet), as well as cross-promotion at live events presented by MPress Records, including 6000+ pieces distributed at various label-attended industry conferences throughout 2007. Wider plans to service the disc to press and college/AAA formats are in the works. Says Sage, "When I performed at Lilith Fair I experienced first hand how powerful it could be...for artists at all different levels in their careers to perform together for an equally diverse group of music-lovers." For the second year, Sonicbids.com will be the exclusive online platform for "New Arrivals: Volume 2" and will be accepting submissions through September 30th. AAA, Singer-Songwriter, Americana, Rock and Pop submissions are highly encouraged, but all styles of music are welcome and will be considered. MPress Records, which has released seven albums of Sage's keyboard-driven art/pop, has produced numerous showcases and festivals highlighting DIY musicians (i.e. "MPressFests") throughout the country, and plans to present several "New Arrivals" concert events in 2007 to promote the compilation and gain greater exposure for featured artists. A to Z Media will be partnering with MPress as the official CD duplication sponsor for "New Arrivals". In addition, Musicians Atlas, TripleARadio.com, Clamor Magazine, MusicDish.com, PowderFinger Promotions, Audix and and a wide range of music, media and lifestyle companies will be donating products/services toward prize packages for selected musicians. Vol. 2 will also include a Bonus Track by Right On Records recording artist/CEO, Melissa Ferrick. * * * Sponsorship Inquiries: chloe@mpressrecords.com Press Inquiries: info@mpressrecords.com or call 1.877.878.7243 Artist Submission Link: http://www.sonicbids.com/newarrivalsvolume2 Opportunity Website: http://www.newarrivalscd.com MySpace Link (*new!): http://www.myspace.com/newarrivalscd Label Website: http://www.mpressrecords.com ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Oct 2006 11:03:48 -0400 From: wojbearpig Subject: Re: Charlotte Martin, Emilie Autumn, P C Hodgell one time at band camp, Todd Pierce (tpierceint@yahoo.com) said: >I've never understood some of the almost visceral >responses that Charlotte seems to provoke on this >list. For my part, it doesn't bother me if she sounds >like Tori - Tori often sounds like Kate to me. i don't think it's that charlotte sounds like tori as much as it's charlotte didn't really sound like herself. for the most part, when folks incorporate their influences into their music, they at least still have something of their own in the mix. for example, sarah mclachlan's first couple albums obviously draw on peter gabriel and KaTe as inspirations but still have sarah's fingerprints all over them. charlotte martin, particularly in her earlier live performances, seems to have a lot more influence than herself in what she did. also, the reaction is not simply a reaction to copy-catism. in my case, i'm put off by her on-stage demeanor and her management. granted, i've only seen her play once so i admit it's not a completely informed opinion, but i have listened to a lot of live recordings. and well, her whole shtick seems pre-meditated to me. that said, based on a couple listens, i agree completely with todd here: >At any >rate, I really like Charlotte's Stromata. For me it >fulfills the promise she showed on Test Drive Songs - >promise that was hidden on On Your Shore, which seemed >too commercial for me. i really liked test drive songs and enjoyed the "in parenthesis" ep. but _on your shore_ was a big disappointment. too commerical, i suppose, but mostly, i found it just plain boring. _stromata_ isn't boring. >It is very close to >knocking off Rachael Sage's Blistering Sun as my album >of the year so far. hey now! let's not get ahead of ourselves! ;) ;) ;) seriously though, rachael's _the blistering sun_ is an excellent piece of work and the most consistently exciting record she's done since _painting of a painting_ (not that i don't like the other in between) but neither are record-of-the-year material for me. not sure what is yet though. so don't ask. ;) woj n.p. wfmu ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 Oct 2006 09:07:17 -0700 From: Nadyne Mielke Subject: Re: Charlotte Martin, Emilie Autumn, P C Hodgell On 3/10/06 08:03, "wojbearpig" wrote: [Charlotte Martin] > in my case, i'm put off by her on-stage demeanor and her management. > granted, i've only seen her play once so i admit it's not a completely > informed opinion, but i have listened to a lot of live recordings. and > well, her whole shtick seems pre-meditated to me. This is exactly what puts me off of her, too. Her performances feel like they're entirely scripted. It all feels too calculated. /nm ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 03 Oct 2006 17:24:01 -0400 From: "JoAnn Whetsell" Subject: comeback kids: catie curtis, shawn colvin, indigo girls Catie Curtis and Shawn Colvin recently released their best albums in years following some dreadfully boring work. "Dreaming in Romance Languages," Catie's last album, was not as good as her best work but was promising, after the disappointing "Crash Course In Roses" and "My Shirt Looks Good On You." "Long Night Moon," her new album, delivers on the promise of "Dreaming..." and is up there with her best work. There's more energy and less production. She sings about love, about the Katrina disaster, and about hope for the future and her children. Shawn Colvin's last studio album "A Whole New You" was dismal, and the new song on "Polaroids," her greatest hits collection, was pretty dull. So I was extremely happily surprised by how good her new album is. "These Four Walls" is similar folk-pop to "A Few Small Repairs" but lighter sounding somehow, and probably a better album overall. Great tunes, great arrangements, and an overall cheeriness without being sappy, though she does touch on darker themes like depression and stagnation. Highly highly recommended for fans or anyone who enjoys the contemporary folk-pop scene. There's a long interview and performance on NPR at http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=6148332 The new Indigo Girls album is also quite good, though not up there with their best work. I'd rate it around "Shaming of the Sun" and "Come On Now Social." I guess it's the joy of low expectations; I'm happy to continue to buy the Girls' albums, but I really don't expect much out of them anymore. "Become You" was pretty but bland. "All That We Let In" had a few great songs, a few awful songs, and a lot of stuff in the middle. "Despite Our Differences" finds the duo sounding fresher and more energetic. I find myself not paying particular attention to the lyrics but just enjoying the music and the harmonies. Unfortunately, Emily still insists on writing and recording some terrible, sentimal pap ("Fly Away," "Last Tears") but her songwriting has improved since the last album, and there are really only 2 or 3 skippable songs on the album. "I Believe In Love" which sounds like it would be sappy is actually a strong song. The collectors edition includes a bonus disc with 4 live tracks and 2 "alternate studio acoustic mixes", all of songs from the album. Amy's rock songs sound great live, but unfortunately both "Fly Away" and "Last Tears" are included, and the alternate versions are no better. JoAnn ------------------------------ Date: Tue, 3 Oct 2006 16:44:40 -0500 From: "Jon Wesley Huff" Subject: Re: Charlotte Martin, Emilie Autumn, P C Hodgell I really find that hard to understand. I think she's is one of the most genuine, sincere performers I've ever seen. Every person who performs on stage puts on something of an act, whether it be "serious, artsy performer" or "crazy fun-loving performer," it's all a choice in how they present themselves. Maybe I've had the fortune of seeing her (twice) on her "home ground," in Ilinois, where a ton of her family and friends came. Maybe she was more relaxed? When some technical glitches interrupted her show, she sort of laughed it off and made a few fun comments about it. I met her after the show and she was so warm and inviting, opening my CD for me so I didn't have to get it out of the wrapping, offering to sign my other CDs I had just purchased even though I didn't ask, chatting a bit about Happy Rhodes and her Stromata video. She probably put on one of the best performances I've seen in a long time. One of my friends came with me, and he'd never seen or heard of her before. He's notoriously picky, and he said how much he loved the show and how amazing the energy was. We both agreed we wanted to be her friend. He even commented that she did remind him of Tori Amos, but without all the pretension So, go figure! I guess people perceive things differently, but I feel like her stage persona is so far in the other direction from being calculated that it sort of blows my mind to hear differently. On 10/3/06, Nadyne Mielke wrote: > > On 3/10/06 08:03, "wojbearpig" wrote: > > [Charlotte Martin] > > > in my case, i'm put off by her on-stage demeanor and her management. > > granted, i've only seen her play once so i admit it's not a completely > > informed opinion, but i have listened to a lot of live recordings. and > > well, her whole shtick seems pre-meditated to me. > > This is exactly what puts me off of her, too. Her performances feel like > they're entirely scripted. It all feels too calculated. > > /nm ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V12 #263 ***************************