From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V13 #236 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Thursday, September 6 2007 Volume 13 : Number 236 To unsubscribe: e-mail ecto-digest-request@smoe.org and put the word unsubscribe in the message body. Today's Subjects: ----------------- Ectofest 2007 ["robert bristow-johnson" ] Re: Ectofest 2007 [meredith ] Re: Ectofest 2007 [laura@reelingreviews.com] Greta Gertler at Ectofest [DanStark <2005.carnivore99@verizon.net>] Re: Greta Gertler at Ectofest ["robert bristow-johnson" ] Re: Greta Gertler at Ectofest ["robert bristow-johnson" ] Re: Greta Gertler at Ectofest [] Re: Ectofest 2007 ["Xenu's Sister" ] Re: Ectofest 2007 [meredith ] Re: Ectofest 2007 ["F.J.Fornorn" ] Re: Ectofest 2007 [Alberto ] Re: Ectofest 2007 ["robert bristow-johnson" ] Attention Milwaukee-area ectophiles ... [meredith ] ot/tech: i-pod shuffle help. ["heidi maier" ] Re: Ectofest 2007 [jessica koeppel ] Re: Ectofest 2007 ["Xenu's Sister" ] Re: Ectofest 2007 ["Xenu's Sister" ] Sunday plans? ["Xenu's Sister" ] Re: Ectofest 2007 ["Xenu's Sister" ] Carol King & the latest Shivaree cover CD ["Ella McCrystle" Subject: Ectofest 2007 Okay folks, here are my last-minute thoughts about the show and issues related: Getting there: Lily Pad http://www.lily-pad.net/ 1353 Cambridge St. Inman Square Cambridge, MA 02139 http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&hl=en&geocode=&q=1353+Cambridge+St,+Cambridge,+MA+02139&sll=42.376773,-71.270018&sspn=0.010335,0.020084&ie=UTF8&ll=42.376047,-71.119308&spn=0.041341,0.080338&z=14&om=1 Driving: The venue address is as listed above which is also at Inman Square in Cambridge. Unfortunately, I can see four completely different Cambridge Streets in 3 different towns, any could be relevant. You might be coming in from the west on the Mass Pike (I-90). Take the Brighton/Cambridge exit, pay your last tolls, take Cambridge St. (not the same Cambridge St. as the venue), cross the Charles River and it becomes River St., take it to Central Square (wave at your compatriots walking from the Red Line) and it becomes Prospect St., in about 600 meters hang a left on Hampshire St., in two blocks you'll be at Inman Square. If you're coming from the north, I remember from my Portland Maine daze, that I took the Tobin bridge, and found my way to Storrow Drive. If you're coming on I-93 (either from the NW or from the south), there's a relatively new spagetti bowl with signs for "Govt. Center"/Storrow Drive. Take that, look for the Longfellow Bridge (at even another "Cambridge St."), cross the Charles (becomes Main St.), veer right on Broadway, veer right again on Hampshire, continue to Inman Square (Cambridge St.). Or you can take the bridge by the Museum of Science (MA-28 Monsignor Obrien Hwy), and Cambridge Street (the one we want) a veering on the left, straight away. Maybe you're coming from the northwest. MA-2 (Concord Turnpike), Alewife Brook Pkwy, Concord Ave, Garden St., skim the traffic circle at Mass Ave (by Harvard Sq.) exit right away going under an overpass (which is Harvard U itself) coming out on Cambridge St. (the *right* Cambridge St.). Continue on until Hampshire and pray for parking mercies. Rot's o' ruk finding parking. Driving and parking in Cambridge/Boston/Somerville makes me pine for Manhattan. The latter is *much* easier. On these main (commercial) streets, if you can see an empty metered spot a few blocks away, take it and thank your lucky stars. You won't need to plug the meter after 6 pm, if I am not mistaken. Do not park on any of the residential streets (like Inman or Antrium or Springfield). They are residential permit parking only. Your car is unlikely to be towed but almost certainly will be ticketed, and the City of Cambridge will come after you if the ticket is ignored. Even if your car is registered outa state (like Vermont... them bastards). Flying in (Logan): Find the Silver Line (a schizoid bus that thinks it's a subway) stop at the terminal of your arrival. Get a $1.70 "Charlie Card" (I think there's a vending machine for it) and take the Silver Line to South Station (downtown). Transfer to the Red Line (a *real* subway train) and take it to Central Square (Mass Ave.) Find Prospect and walk about 600 meters to Hampshire (wave at your compatriots driving from the Mass Pike). Hang a left on Hampshire and go another couple blocks to Inman Square (Cambridge St.) and then thank whatever deity that floats your boat that you have no #@%&*~!! vehicle that you have to find a #%@&*~!! parking spot for. See http://www.mbta.com/schedules_and_maps/subway/ , hit the "Interactive Street Map" tab and zoom in to the area of interest to get the big picture. The Venue: We'll see if we can open doors at 7, but no guarantees. We'll have them open as soon as we can between 7:00 pm and 7:15, I think. Let's try to avoid a Who concert at Cincinatti incident :-) When the show actually starts, space from no-shows may go to walk-ups. At our discretion, we'll try to make "hurry up" calls to cell phones we have on record. There are at least two pubs, a coffee shop, and other quaint businesses at Inman Square to hang out before and after. Vickie and crew might be at Haveli (1248 Cambridge St., corner of Prospect so *don't* hang a left on Hampshire if you're heading to Haveli, just keep going on Prospect until you hit Cambridge St.) until some hour before the show. I dunno. Seating: We have 80 audience members and about 40 seats. Half of us will be standing (think of it as "Festival Seating"). Those standing will have very good sight lines looking over those seated. For those seated, there could be times that you might want to stand, stretch, and enjoy the music on your feet. Please do, but let someone who's been standing use "your" chair. I would like to officially discourage hoarding or any possessive attitude toward chairs or real-estate. Let's see if we can show the world (or at least ourselves) how enlightened and generous we Ectophiles are (for a primer check out http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Enlightened_self-interest which I had a hand in writing before they kicked my ass outa Wikipedia). Please consider your fellow ectophiles and consider sharing different spots throughout the show in this tight venue. Because it's soooo small, nearly everyone will have very good sight lines. One exception we shall make is for anyone disabled, infirmed, elderly, expecting child, whatever. Anyone obviously needing a seat should be offered every consideration by everyone else. In that manner I might ask someone to contribute their seat to one who needs it more. So *please* don't consider the seat you're sitting in or the spot you're standing in to belong to you, exclusively. Let's try to make this so that everyone, at some time during the show, had an opportunity to sit. Let's trip over each other with kindness and deference. There are two rest rooms at Lily Pad. On the left. I'll try to have them marked. The coffeehouse at Hampshire St has two also. I'll have a cooler full of bottled water, seltzer, and maybe soda. Please contribute to the cost thereof. I hope the temperature will become moderate (it's predicted to be pretty warm but dry), because I believe that the A/C (up at the stage area) will be insufficient to displace the thermal energy generated by nearly 90 people plus gear plus lights. Ventilation will be the primary means to displace such heat. You might want to consider the temperature and the current forecast in your choice of apparel. Alcohol: Sorry, no alcohol license at the Lily Pad. If you sneak any in, be so discrete that no one can tell. I and the owner need any "plausible denyability" (as in John Poindexter referring to Ronald Raygun) that we knew of any booze inside. We just cannot be aware of it being there and, being that there are pubs next door and across the street, it's not really necessary. Smoking: Needless to say, there will be no smoking, of *anything* in the Lily Pad, but outside the door on the sidewalk should be okay. If the substance being lit is non-tobacco, our friends flying in over the pond need to be aware that nowhere in the U.S. is like Amsterdam. We're not very enlightened in the U.S. (be discrete). Leaving/readmittance: Your ticket is a US$20 bill (or equivalent). We're not hand stamping. We have some nice little business card sized re-admit passes that we shall issue if you want to leave to get inebriated, you can get back in by surrendering the re-admit pass. These passes and depo-provera are our means of population control. CDs: I'm sure the artists are all bringing CDs for purchase. Please support them by buying CDs. Lastly, thank y'all whose coming *for* coming. It very nearly pays the bills and I will die with a smile on my face. If I had been confident of the turnout when I first arranged this gig, I would have sought someplace bigger. Think of this as a unique and intimate evening with truly world-class musicians that you can tell your grand-kids about someday (rather than watching some shallow pop artist on a projected screen in a stadium with 30000 other bleeting sheep). We can go on smugly in the knowledge of such amidst an ignorant and shallow world of Madonnas and Mariahs and Britneys and Lindsays and Christinas and Destinys and Beyonces and Carries and Hilarys and Ciaras and Shanias and Jessicas and Ashlees (those named after chain hotels in French capitol cities deserve not even a mention). We know what feminine plus music truly add up to. - -- r b-j rbj@audioimagination.com "Imagination is more important than knowledge." ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 11:32:24 -0400 From: meredith Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 Hi, robert bristow-johnson wrote: > Okay folks, here are my last-minute thoughts about the show and issues related: It's killing me more and more that I won't be able to be there on Saturday ... it's the first-ever Ectofest-related event I've missed. :( But I know for a fact that y'all are in for a wonderful show. And do bring money for CDs -- if nothing else, you're going to be buying Noe's new CD on your way out the door. :) Big kudos to Robert for making this happen. Back in the spring of '99 when Chuck and I had the supremely silly idea "hey, let's put on a concert with a bunch of ecto artists and see if Happy will come headline it" we had no idea that we'd be doing three of them ourselves, and then the idea would get franchised to California and now Boston. (The Danbury Ectofests taught me how not to run a festival :}, but that knowledge has served me very well over the years!) It's pretty damn cool. Those of you in attendance are going to have an amazing time. Say hi to Happy for me. P.S. I would also add to the seating info below: TALL PEOPLE STAND IN THE BACK. :} - -- =============================================== Meredith Tarr New Haven, CT USA mailto:meth@smoe.org http://www.smoe.org/meth =============================================== hear at the HOMe House Concert Series http://hom.smoe.org =============================================== ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 12:02:51 -0400 From: laura@reelingreviews.com Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 (The Danbury Ectofests taught me how not to run a > festival :}, I don't know what you're talking about Meredith - I was at the first one and had a great time! Laura ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 11:45:41 -0400 From: DanStark <2005.carnivore99@verizon.net> Subject: Greta Gertler at Ectofest Greta Gertler just sent around an E-mail announcement of upcoming gigs to her mailing list, which included this tidbit: And Greta will be playing piano and singing backing vocals with... * NOE VENABLE SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - 7pm THE LILYPAD ( http://www.lily-pad.net) http://www.noevenable.com So apparently we'll get treated to seeing Greta at Ectofest, even if it's only in a backing role. I wonder if Noe will be kind enough to let her perform one or two of her own songs. Hopefully she'll think to bring numerous copies of her new CD along with her to offer for sale in any case. Dan ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 13:14:05 -0400 From: "robert bristow-johnson" Subject: Re: Greta Gertler at Ectofest > ----- Original Message ----- > From: DanStark <2005.carnivore99@verizon.net> > To: Ecto > Subject: Greta Gertler at Ectofest > Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 11:45:41 -0400 > > > Greta Gertler just sent around an E-mail announcement of upcoming gigs > to her mailing list, which included this tidbit: > > And Greta will be playing piano and singing backing vocals with... > > * NOE VENABLE > SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 8 - 7pm yeah, i never understood that aussie way of displaying time. toilets whirlpool in the opposite direction - do they do everything backwards down under? > THE LILYPAD ( http://www.lily-pad.net) > http://www.noevenable.com both Greta and Noe have been in the LP earlier this summer. > So apparently we'll get treated to seeing Greta at Ectofest, even if it's > only in a backing role. I wonder if Noe will be kind enough to let her > perform one or two of her own songs. Hopefully she'll think to bring > numerous copies of her new CD along with her to offer for sale in any > case. i'm not sure that i want it on the same table as those from the primary artists. but i really don't care. we'll have other things to worry about. - -- r b-j rbj@audioimagination.com "Imagination is more important than knowledge." ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 13:15:04 -0400 From: "robert bristow-johnson" Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 > ----- Original Message ----- > From: meredith > To: ecto > Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 > Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 11:32:24 -0400 > > .... > > It's killing me more and more that I won't be able to be there on Saturday > ... it's the first-ever Ectofest-related event I've missed. :( i tried to get you on-board. tell Rachael that you're just too sick. .... > P.S. I would also add to the seating info below: TALL PEOPLE STAND IN THE > BACK. :} or along the walls on the side. there should be room for a "column" of standers on each side of the room and those folks should have unobstructed sight lines. if we were totally utilitarian about this, yes the tall people would stand in back behind other standers less tall. but there won't be that many layers (or rows) of standers in the back. unless they're out in the street. the place just ain't that big. - -- r b-j rbj@audioimagination.com "Imagination is more important than knowledge." - -- r b-j rbj@audioimagination.com "Imagination is more important than knowledge." ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 16:32:50 -0400 From: "robert bristow-johnson" Subject: Re: Greta Gertler at Ectofest > ----- Original Message ----- > From: DanStark <2005.carnivore99@verizon.net> > To: "robert bristow-johnson" , ecto@smoe.org > Subject: Re: Greta Gertler at Ectofest > Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 14:07:35 -0400 > > > robert bristow-johnson wrote: > > > > So apparently we'll get treated to seeing Greta at Ectofest, even if it's > > > only in a backing role... Hopefully she'll think to bring > > > numerous copies of her new CD along with her to offer for sale in any > > > case. > > > > i'm not sure that i want it on the same table as those from the primary > > artists. but i really don't care. we'll have other things to worry about. > > Wow. I think Greta is a terrific artist in her own right...in fact it's too > bad she didn't get her own set since some of the people who are coming from > great distances have probably never had the opportunity to see her play. > She's certainly had praise on Ecto over the years...is she not worthy enough > to get a corner of the table if she's going to be helping out as a band > member despite not being on the bill? not an issue of her being worthy, more of an issue of who's name is on the bill. > ----- Original Message ----- > From: meredith > To: "robert bristow-johnson" > Subject: Re: Greta Gertler at Ectofest > Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 15:18:34 -0400 > > > Aww, be a mensch. :) I'd let her do it if she wanted ... she's as ecto as > they come in her own right, and her new CD is wonderful. > > Actually since she's Noe's sideman it's really up to Noe whether she sells > her own merch... oh, all right! fine. i don't really care, but i just don't wanna do anything in "bad taste" that might piss off one of the principals (whom are Happy, Noe, and Casey). that's why i sorta put a sock on the idea of openly swapping ripped music (that was Happy's) at the Ectofest. it *has* to be in sorta bad taste to be swapping ripped music at a gig where the artist herself is selling her music. it's kinda hard to compete with free. this thing with Greta and her music at Ectofest is not exactly that, but since she's not on the bill, i wonder if the artists who *are* on the bill would be less appreciative of it if the focus was diverted from them to someone else not on the bill. of course each of the three principals have to expect "competing" merch from the other two. but i would think they have every reasonable expectation not to have attention to themselves and their music diluted with a fourth party. i dunno. BTW, i got to meet Greta twice before, both times at Noe gigs. at the Rockwood in NYC in May and at this thing August 2nd with Noe and Greta and Alice Bierhorst at Lily Pad. - -- r b-j rbj@audioimagination.com "Imagination is more important than knowledge." ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 14:07:35 -0400 From: DanStark <2005.carnivore99@verizon.net> Subject: Re: Greta Gertler at Ectofest robert bristow-johnson wrote: > > So apparently we'll get treated to seeing Greta at Ectofest, even if it's > > only in a backing role... Hopefully she'll think to bring > > numerous copies of her new CD along with her to offer for sale in any > > case. > >i'm not sure that i want it on the same table as those from the >primary artists. but i really don't care. we'll have other things >to worry about. Wow. I think Greta is a terrific artist in her own right...in fact it's too bad she didn't get her own set since some of the people who are coming from great distances have probably never had the opportunity to see her play. She's certainly had praise on Ecto over the years...is she not worthy enough to get a corner of the table if she's going to be helping out as a band member despite not being on the bill? Just my humble opinion of course. >-- > >r b-j rbj@audioimagination.com > >"Imagination is more important than knowledge." ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 14:58:00 -0700 From: Subject: Re: Greta Gertler at Ectofest someone wrote: "not an issue of her being worthy, more of an issue of who's name is on the bill." No...it's not a matter of ANY of the points mentioned....If I want to buy an artists CD...I'll frickin' well buy it from their website or CD Baby....I do not need a show....let alone a table! Reality check! However....any gracious host or artist with an ace backing band or friends who are artists themselves (ahem) sitting in with them are perfectly within their bounds....unless there are time constrictions....to introduce their band members and/or highlight them in other ways and let everyone know they too have CD's for sale..... WOW Since when did the indie scene turn into a boxing ring over who gets a little table space? Lol.....a cute little suitcase full of merch...parked outside....if it's just a space problem should be a no brainer.... Otherwise.....this all just reeks of insecurities and ego's....YAWN.....and....like I said.....I can always stay home and order CD's.... I started producing shows when I was 15....the point was and still is for people to share and have a worthwhile time.... This does mean people travelling great distances to see artists should be able to buy whatever merch they can get....as....chances are....it's all going to be harder and more money to get from across the pond.... So......you might just want to think about them..... :-) ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 15:54:52 -0700 (PDT) From: "Xenu's Sister" Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 - --- meredith wrote: > P.S. I would also add to the seating info below: TALL PEOPLE STAND IN THE BACK. :} I'd add, though it's almost certainly not necessary for ectophiles... NO TALKING DURING PERFORMANCES. Most everyone, in this crowd in particular, are there because they really really really want to be there, plus I have visions of, say, when Happy in particular is on, everyone staring, silent, in slack-jawed awe, just soaking in the amazing wonderfulness of it all. Pin drop kind of thing. Still, anyone who's ever been to a concert knows how it can be. Some people are there to see one person, and others are there to see another person, and during one of the acts that certain people aren't there to see, they can get loose-lipped, especially if they're near the back. Also, since the doors will be open, there's the concern of people standing out on the sidewalk jabbering. Although I have visions of people standing there, listening intently, that might not be realistic. My fervent hope is that the door/CD selling people (*waves to Jeff and Paul*) will put aside their ectophilic politeness and make people back there and right outside hush. No one should be afraid to "shhhhh" others. Excessive talking without heeding a "shhh" hint should be grounds for ejection. That's what I think. See, I've never gotten over the horror of listening to a recording of the Ectofest where Happy premiered a new song, never played or heard before, and hearing a bunch of chatty dolts standing next to the person recording, jabbering about absolutely nothing important (especially compared to a BRAND FRICKING NEW HAPPY SONG!!). I can't listen to that recording, I get livid with anger every time. Never mind why they were being talking morons in the first place. Why the hell weren't they shushed by people standing nearby? It should be dead quiet for Casey. It should be dead quiet for Noe. It should absofrickinlutely be dead quiet for Happy. Vickie (takes no shit from rude yakkers) ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 19:55:35 -0400 From: meredith Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 Hi, Xenu's Sister wrote: > See, I've never gotten over the horror of listening to a recording of the > Ectofest where Happy premiered a new song, never played or heard before, > and hearing a bunch of chatty dolts standing next to the person recording, > jabbering about absolutely nothing important (especially compared to a > BRAND FRICKING NEW HAPPY SONG!!). I can't listen to that recording, I get > livid with anger every time. Never mind why they were being talking morons > in the first place. Why the hell weren't they shushed by people standing > nearby? Because it was an outdoor festival in a park, and they really weren't talking that loudly ... they just happened to be in a really bad spot (i.e. next to the mics). Also, sad to say but not everybody was there to see Happy. One of the points of the whole exercise was to introduce her music to new people. We had to try to attract as wide an audience as possible to make it. The Danbury ectofests were so poorly attended that everyone pretty much had their own unbroken expanse of lawn all to themselves. I would be really surprised if those people who are unfortunately immortalized on the recording were bothering anybody else at the time, seriously. - -- =============================================== Meredith Tarr New Haven, CT USA mailto:meth@smoe.org http://www.smoe.org/meth =============================================== hear at the HOMe House Concert Series http://hom.smoe.org =============================================== ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 21:43:50 -0400 From: "F.J.Fornorn" Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 (sigh). Been thru this discussion before with Vickie. It was my recording, and they were my morons (I mean friends). Everything Meredith says is correct: we were not loud, we had plenty of space around us, and my recorder was in my bag between our lawn chairs. The talking may have spoiled the recording but not anyone's experience. These morons and I had often attended jazz festivals over the years, and going to see live music, especially "fests", was more of a social event than music fandom. They did not know Happy or any of the performers that day. We talked about them all while they played. They enjoyed all of them. One of them was especially disappointed that Happy had no CDs with her for sale at the time. If you'd have gone around shushing us then you'd have had (at least) 4 distinct shoeprints on your butt. You would have been the one who deserved to be ejected. As a matter of fact, watching an obsessive fan try to impose their will on an audience would be the kind of thing us morons would love to talk about all thru the rest of the show. Don't worry, if I come (and hearing that diatribe doesn't especially encourage me) I will be alone and I will talk to no one. Probably including before and after the show as well. On Sep 5, 2007, at 7:55 PM, meredith wrote: > Hi, > > Xenu's Sister wrote: >> See, I've never gotten over the horror of listening to a recording >> of the >> Ectofest where Happy premiered a new song, never played or heard >> before, >> and hearing a bunch of chatty dolts standing next to the person >> recording, >> jabbering about absolutely nothing important (especially compared >> to a BRAND FRICKING NEW HAPPY SONG!!). I can't listen to that >> recording, I get >> livid with anger every time. Never mind why they were being >> talking morons >> in the first place. Why the hell weren't they shushed by people >> standing >> nearby? > > Because it was an outdoor festival in a park, and they really > weren't talking that loudly ... they just happened to be in a > really bad spot (i.e. next to the mics). > > Also, sad to say but not everybody was there to see Happy. One of > the points of the whole exercise was to introduce her music to new > people. We had to try to attract as wide an audience as possible > to make it. > > The Danbury ectofests were so poorly attended that everyone pretty > much had their own unbroken expanse of lawn all to themselves. I > would be really surprised if those people who are unfortunately > immortalized on the recording were bothering anybody else at the > time, seriously. > > > -- > =============================================== > Meredith Tarr > New Haven, CT USA > mailto:meth@smoe.org > http://www.smoe.org/meth > =============================================== > hear at the HOMe House Concert Series > http://hom.smoe.org > =============================================== ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 19:14:09 -0700 (PDT) From: Alberto Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 "F.J.Fornorn" wrote: If you'd have gone around shushing us then you'd have had (at least) 4 distinct shoeprints on your butt. You would have been the one who deserved to be ejected. As a matter of fact, watching an obsessive fan try to impose their will on an audience would be the kind of thing us morons would love to talk about all thru the rest of the show. - ------------ Ectoids~ I don't understand why people would be so offended by a request for common courtesy. People wouldn't consider yakking through a classical performance, but have no qualms about doing so at a pop performance. Seems they're the ones imposing THEIR will on everyone. I've shooshed people at many a show over the years. I recall two instances specifically: A couple of women were discussing shopping during Peter Gabriel's very quiet "Mercy Street" at a show in Chicago. They were about 10 rows behind me to give you an idea of how loud they were. I stood, turned around and shouted, "Excuse me... but can you PLEASE shut up?", and the entire section applauded. At another performance by Cluster, whose music had a very reserved, classical feel, I turned around and asked if the two people intended to talk through the entire show. Annoyed, I asked, "Why are you even here, if not to listen?", and they looked at each other and said, "Why ARE we here?", and left... I've also been shooshed myself, and immediately apologized and shut up. I felt I'd been rude and thought the complainant was perfectly within their rights. ~Alberto "I don't know anything about music. In my line, you don't have to." ~Elvis Presley - --------------------------------- Take the Internet to Go: Yahoo!Go puts the Internet in your pocket: mail, news, photos & more. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 22:02:41 -0400 From: "robert bristow-johnson" Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 > ----- Original Message ----- > From: "Xenu's Sister" > To: Ecto > Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 > Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 15:54:52 -0700 (PDT) > > > NO TALKING DURING PERFORMANCES. > > Most everyone, in this crowd in particular, are there because they > really really really want to be there, plus I have visions of, say, > when Happy in particular is on, everyone staring, silent, in slack- > jawed awe, just soaking in the amazing wonderfulness of it all. Pin > drop kind of thing. ... > See, I've never gotten over the horror of listening to a recording of the > Ectofest where Happy premiered a new song, never played or heard before, > and hearing a bunch of chatty dolts standing next to the person recording, > jabbering about absolutely nothing important (especially compared to a > BRAND FRICKING NEW HAPPY SONG!!). I can't listen to that recording, I get > livid with anger every time. Never mind why they were being talking morons > in the first place. Why the hell weren't they shushed by people standing > nearby? i or Paul or Jeff may well shush anyone that we understand is annoying either the audience or the performers. but one thing i might suggest is for everyone (including the principals) to just not take themselves, nor the gig, so seriously that it impedes "soaking in the amazing wonderfulness of it all." this is a concert for the enjoyment of human beings. it's not a funeral or the ICU or a capital-murder trial or a church/synagog/mosque/temple/whatever service. nor is it the recording studio. we're there with smiles on our faces having a good time, not paying respects to the memory of a relative. my recommendation for everyone, myself particularly, is to chill (self-medicate, if it helps) and appreciate the blossum petals that drop down upon us. - -- r b-j rbj@audioimagination.com "Imagination is more important than knowledge." ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 22:47:48 -0400 From: meredith Subject: Attention Milwaukee-area ectophiles ... Hi, I know there are at least a couple of you out there (*waves at Chip* :) ... Tomorrow night Rachael Sage is headlining the WUWM "listener appreciation concert" at The Grain Exchange, in the Mackie Building in downtown Milwaukee. Also on the bill are Mary Karlzen and Sarah Borges and the Broken Singles (radio darlings of the moment, and for good reason too). As far as I know you don't need to be a WUWM member to get tickets, but you *do* need to get tickets in advance, b/c they won't be selling any at the door. They are only $15 for a full night of music. (Rachael's set begins at 9:30.) http://www.wuwm.org If any of y'all are out there it'd be great to see you ... The Grain Exchange looks like a really stunning venue, too. - -- =============================================== Meredith Tarr New Haven, CT USA mailto:meth@smoe.org http://www.smoe.org/meth =============================================== hear at the HOMe House Concert Series http://hom.smoe.org =============================================== ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 13:39:31 +1000 From: "heidi maier" Subject: ot/tech: i-pod shuffle help. i'm having trouble trying to get my computer to even recognise the i-pod shuffle i've been given. i'm a bit of a luddite, granted, so i wondered if someone out there might be willing to let me ask them what will surely amount to some very dumb questions in my quest to get this to work? :) basically what happens is that i insert the disc that came with the shuffle, and it throws up a screen asking me to choose my language. i choose english, it throws up the installshield wizard, "i-pod for windows" and says "welcome to the i-pod installer." i hit "next" and then it throws up the window asking me to please connect my i-pod in case it needs to be formatted. so i do this, and that's essentially when everything goes awry. it comes up with the screen with the little boxes that form the line as it is searching for the i-pod. i'm wondering if the fact that i don't have a high speed usb port to connect it to is stuffing things up?because it just sits there, doing this, the little orange light flashing on the i-pod shuffle itself, for absolutely ages, and then, eventually, the i-pod window goes white (ie: nothing is visible inside the frame of the pop-up screen) with the blue line across its top saying "i-pod for windows." left to its own devices, it'll do this for hours. if i pull the i-pod out of the usb port, it then comes up with a window saying that my i-pod needs to be formatted. i hit the "format" button and nothing happens, it just throws up an installshield error window "1628: failed to complete installation." i have no idea what to do! i should add that is one of the older i-pods, the small and slim all white ones. warmly, heidi. ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 05 Sep 2007 09:41:42 -0700 From: jessica koeppel Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 meredith wrote: > P.S. I would also add to the seating info below: TALL PEOPLE STAND IN > THE BACK. :} dilemma!! I'm 6 feet tall! my husband is 5 foot 6 inches! if i'm in the back, he won't be able to see a thing if he's with me. *cry* maybe we'll be fortunate enough to get seats. but being tall I'll feel pressured to stand! - --jessica ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 21:09:14 -0700 (PDT) From: "Xenu's Sister" Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 - --- "F.J.Fornorn" wrote: > (sigh). > > Been thru this discussion before with Vickie. It was my recording, > and they were my morons (I mean friends). To be honest, I had forgotten it was your recording. I have the memory of a sieve in the best of times. I do apologise for calling your friends names, and take what you and meth said into consideration as to the circumstances. > Don't worry, if I come (and hearing that diatribe doesn't especially > encourage me) I will be alone and I will talk to no one. Probably > including before and after the show as well. Oh great, what I said is going to affect your talking to ANYONE (before and after the show, and between sets, when it's perfectly ok to talk), and might even prevent you from coming altogether when you've been to practically every other Happy show on the east coast? I'm sorry, but...well, I am sorry. I'm sorry I said anything. I'll admit now that the Danbury ectofests were a different situation. They were held outdoors in a large space, and after meth's post I can see how talking that affected the recording wouldn't affect the show as a whole and other people attending. I reacted more strongly to that simply because it was the first time I was hearing a brand new Happy Rhodes song (one that wouldn't get released for another 5-6 years until we got the Find Me Sampler). The situation at The Lily Pad is going to be entirely different. It's an indoor show, at a small venue, and voices will easily carry around and affect EVERYONE, including the performers. I don't take myself seriously at all. I do take silence during performances seriously. Perhaps too seriously at times, but not this time. This is going to be a very very special evening. Talkers CAN ruin it for other members as well as make the performers feel bad. This particular audience should be particularly attentive and appreciative. I'm just talking about the possibility of a few chatterers and how they should be shushed. It's not impolite to shush people *during a performance* (obviously, talking before, after and between sets is FINE, did anyone actually think I was saying otherwise??). People whispering I can deal with. Out loud talking...nuh uh. Vickie ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 21:43:27 -0700 (PDT) From: "Xenu's Sister" Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 - --- jessica koeppel wrote: > I'm 6 feet tall! my husband is 5 foot 6 inches! You're married!? Congratulations! I have you on my Haveli list. Where do you live now? Vickie ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 22:19:19 -0700 (PDT) From: "Xenu's Sister" Subject: Sunday plans? What are people doing on Sunday? Is anyone doing anything sightseeingish that could include a couple of fat, geeky geezers? To go with, not sightsee, we're boring to look at. I promise I won't bite anyone's head off or shush anyone at any time. Here's our situation: On Sunday night we'll be staying in Winthrop. We never considered staying there Saturday night because it's too far away from the venue and there are no late busses, but for Sunday, it's close to the airport for our Monday flight back. However, we won't be going to Winthrop until sometime Sunday late-afternoon/early evening (it's open as to when we get there), so we are at loose ends for Sunday. We have absolutely no plans and no idea what to do. I would imagine we'll have all our stuff with us because we most likely can't leave it at the Beacon Hill Friends House after we leave to go off sightseeing. That'll be a couple of backpacks and bags. Any suggestions for a Sunday in Boston? (sans car, of course, we'll be on foot/public transportation) Vickie ------------------------------ Date: Wed, 5 Sep 2007 21:51:10 -0700 (PDT) From: "Xenu's Sister" Subject: Re: Ectofest 2007 - --- robert bristow-johnson wrote: > it's not a ... church/synagog/mosque/temple/whatever service. Ha, speak for yourself. *smile* Happy and Noe are goddesses to me*. I don't know Casey yet but she could be too. > we're there with smiles on our faces having a good time, Oh yes! It'll take *WEEKS* to wipe the smile off my face! (* disclaimer that I'm an atheist and have no belief system that includes gods or goddesses, nor am I a rabid creepy fan. Ok, rabid, sure, but I don't bite. Usually.) V ------------------------------ Date: Thu, 6 Sep 2007 01:30:25 -0400 From: "Ella McCrystle" Subject: Carol King & the latest Shivaree cover CD Sorry to interrupt the 'fest talk, but I bring you news on the Carol King and Shivaree fronts: I'm not entirely sure how "ecto" either are except in the strictest sense of the word. However, there was some talk about the Shivaree CD when we found out what the lineup would include, and given Carol King's huge influence over many ecto arteests, I can't help but be excited about the possibilities... Plus I'm old, and her 1970s work is a big part of the soundtrack to my youth. Carol King's re-released "Love Makes the World" as Deluxe ed. was no great surprise, given that the original label was her own Rockingale Records and they now have an agreement with Ryko Distribution. Rockingale also released _The Living Room Tour_. Other reported upcoming projects include a DVD of "The Living Room Tour." The interesting part is that apparently Ms. King is buying her rights back (or already has them) from at the very least Capitol. Rockingale has announced upcoming reissues of her classics _Simple Things_ (Capitol, 1977), _Welcome Home_ (Capitol, 1978) and _Touch the Sky_ (Capitol, '79) -- all would be first-time CD releases. Also there's a supposed Songwriter Demo series of archival, previously unreleased King recordings. I have to wonder if it's only the Capitol material. If it's stuff from all the years, that could be very exciting. Unfortunately it doesn't look like others want to play in the same sandbox (at least not yet); so a reissue of 1971's _Tapestry_ and all the other Ode/A&M/Epic/Legacy albums as deluxe reissues is probably a pipe-dream. I'm not wild about the "updated" King, & I've never been completely sold on her singing her own music, but she is such a phenomenal songwriter, that I hope she does well in this new venture. And maybe the songs will move to the vocal folds of others who can make them truly shine... - ---------------- Shivaree cover album: _Tainted Love: Mating Calls and Fight Songs_ (Zoe Records, 2007) -- anyone else have an opinion? (That's a silly question to ask the likes of this group!) I've now listened to it several times. I guess my favorite word tonight is "uneven." The list of covers is a wild group that brings fantastic possibilities to my feeble brain. Unfortunately, Ambrosia Parsley's voice is the only difference between some of the originals and the covers. The CD starts off with the Phil Spector conglomeration of "Paradise." It's nice (in the most generic sense of that word.) Shivaree has the distinction of never living up to what I imagine they might do (even with their own music.) R. Kelly's "Half on a Baby" is a disaster of epic proportions. Chuck Berry's "I Want to Be Your Driver" is ruined by the sound. (It may have seemed like a good idea, but it doesn't carry for me.) I'm sure it was intentional, but it sounds just like Berry's own noisy recordings before any clean-up. Staying very true to Spade Cooley's "Shame on You" works, and Nikki Sixx's "Looks that Kill" seems to fit the best with what I think of as the Shivaree sound and is listenable. "Hello Hello I'm Back Again" (Gary Glitter & Mike Leander) is pretty darn catchy & makes me smile. Rick James would be proud of "Cold Blooded" -- take that as you will. Michael Jackson's "Don't Stop 'Til You Get Enough" was one they took some liberties with (and still not enough in some ways.) Unfortunately, it seems more of a purposeful aural spectacle (public masturbation) than a good cover. The more I listen, it's sort of like they didn't even bother to re-arrange anything given their particular sound or influences or anything. They just took the original songs and played/sang them like your local garage band when they get a gig at the local bar. (Listen to the Leadbelly version of "Goodnight Irene" then listen to Shivaree. I'd prefer the original if a cover adds nothing in terms of new perspectives...) Perhaps it's really a "tribute" to the songs/performers they love, but they needn't have released it if that was the case. Overall, I think they stayed WAY too true to the original tunes of these songs, and in doing so, they fall quite short of making them their own and end up just making a mess. Now back to your regularly scheduled EctoFest talk. Be well -- Ella ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ My baby came to me this morning And said I'm kinda confused She said, "If me and B.B. king was both drownin', Which one would you choose ?" I said, "Oh, baby," I said, "Oh, baby," I said, "Oh, baby, Baby, I ain't never heard you play no blues!" - - Steve Goodman ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V13 #236 ***************************