From: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org (ecto-digest) To: ecto-digest@smoe.org Subject: ecto-digest V16 #102 Reply-To: ecto@smoe.org Sender: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Errors-To: owner-ecto-digest@smoe.org Precedence: bulk ecto-digest Saturday, May 14 2011 Volume 16 : Number 102 To unsubscribe: e-mail ecto-digest-request@smoe.org and put the word unsubscribe in the message body. Today's Subjects: ----------------- Today's your birthday, friends... [Mike Matthews ] Re: towhomitmayconcern ["Ella McCrystle" ] Re: towhomitmayconcern [Joseph Zitt ] re:towhomitmayconcern [=?iso-8859-1?Q?anna_maria_stj=E4rnell?= ] Re: towhomitmayconcern [Joseph Zitt ] Re: towhomitmayconcern [Andrew Fries ] ---------------------------------------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Fri, 13 May 2011 03:00:03 -0400 (EDT) From: Mike Matthews Subject: Today's your birthday, friends... i*i*i*i*i*i i*i*i*i*i*i *************** *****HAPPY********* **************BIRTHDAY********* *************************************************** *************************************************************************** ********************** Steve Fagg (no Email address) ********************** ******************* Karel Zuiderveld (no Email address) ******************* *************************************************************************** -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- Steve Fagg Tue May 13 1958 Nightwol Karel Zuiderveld Fri May 13 1960 Stier Michael Colford Wed May 16 1962 Taurus Christopher Boek Tue May 19 1970 Taurus Julia Macklin Mon May 20 1968 ethereus Yngve Hauge Fri May 21 1971 Gemini Lisa Laane Tue May 22 1973 Gemini Jewel Kilcher Thu May 23 1974 The Gem Chandra Sriram Thu May 27 1971 Gemini Taina Sahlander Mon May 28 1973 Gemini Urs Stafford Thu May 31 1973 Give Way Onna Addis June 01 Gemini Perttu Yli-Krekola Thu June 02 1966 Kaksoset Alexander Johannesen June 03 Gemini Alex Gibbs Thu June 08 1967 Betelgeuse Gleb Zverev Tue June 09 1964 Gemini Sonja Juchniewich Mon June 10 1963 Pegasus Joerg Plate Mon June 12 1967 Gemini Chris Montville Tue June 13 1978 Gemini Ectoplasm (original name) Mailing List Thu June 13 1991 Fuzzier blue - -=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=-=- ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 13 May 2011 06:32:09 -0400 From: "Ella McCrystle" Subject: Re: towhomitmayconcern Hi Peter et al, I must make the obligatory nod to how hectic life in general these days is, and that's probably why I'm with Neile in the "I hate my cell phone. Why would I want a fancy one?" camp. I think we all get too much email also. (I do own a nice iPod though, but all the "app" nonsense drives me bonkers.) I tend to lurk, but I always find time to read, click links & search out recommendations. While my main taste is pretty purely ecto, I also go to Sonisphere yearly and traipse around the classical world (where I grew up) as well as loving pure old rock (Led Zeppelin, Jethro Tull et al.) I do find that I need to seek out music from trusted sources and often find it through the net because there just isn't a regular decent radio station where I live; so that iPod is quite well traveled and owns three different charging plugs so I can charge it in most countries. I'm over-run at times with a list of things to buy. I hate buying e-music, but often do. In general I'm the same as I've always been: perpetually annoyed with the "mainstream" music business, worried about the quality of music and yet still falling in love with new stuff pretty regularly. My best way to find new artists is to stay tuned to emails and concerts from favorite artists. Often they will recommend great new listens as well as using them to open, etc. On the list member's age... I am, however, definitely getting older, and that is also not changing. That's my general not-helpful take on your questions. Ella - ----- Original Message ----- From: "Neile Graham" To: "ecto" Sent: Friday, May 13, 2011 1:32 AM Subject: Re: towhomitmayconcern > If it's any consolation, I don't have an iPhone and am unlikely to > get one because I'm too cheap to pay the monthly fees. My cell phone > costs me $100/year and it's rarely turned on and that's about all > it's worth to me. I have an iPod so I'm not missing out on *that* > much. Well, the immediate internet access, but I can be patient. > > I do look for music samples--I find it fun, and run them when I'm > doing other things. Like right now I'm running the video link that > Sue sent from Phantogram. I'm not watching it, though. (Video > mostly bores me.) > > Does sound interesting, Sue. > > Vinyl is making a comeback everywhere. Carina Round is working on > fundraising to reissue her first album on vinyl, and a lot of > artists I love like Smoke Fairies do singles. > > Unfortunately, the belt on our turntable fell apart and the local > retro stereo repair store is now empty so we haven't even looked > into getting it fixed. > > I also think a lot of us don't post as much as we used to--I > certainly don't, though I like to try to remember to tell you all > what I'm listening to. > > --Neile > > On May 12, 2011, at 4:16 PM, Peter Clark wrote: > >> There were two questions, one about the list and the other about >> artists. Thanks for answering both. I guess I'm old enough that >> the apparent glories of the internet are just that: apparent. My >> six months old iPhone is more of a prop than a phone. I have >> Pandora and Shazam loaded as apps, period. I'm not interested in >> using it for anything else than a phone. I'll be happy enough with >> people thinking I'm hip. >> >> Similarly, the net. I was grateful enough to have discovered this >> list a dozen years ago and still depend on it for new artists, >> etc., probably more than I should judging from the alternative >> sources noted by other responders. Looks like I need to up my >> game. One drawback is that being heavily committed to vinyl as a >> medium, much/most of the Ecto list is unavailable. I'm rather in >> Michael's position, dancing as hard as i can just to stay in place >> and grabbing vinyl versions when I come across them. Alas, the >> audio business has no collective interest in music remotely Ecto. >> Seemingly if it's not Golden Age of jazz or 50's classical >> recording, you can't be serious about software, which of course is >> patent nonsense, but it's an uphill fight. >> >> Thanks for helping me locate my place in the universe. >> >> >> >> Peter Clark >> >> -=High Performance Analogue=- >> redpoint-audio-design.com >> >> >> On May 12, 2011, at 10:37 AM, neile wrote: >> >>> Hi, Peter-- >>> >>> I'm not sure whether you're asking about list members or music. >>> >>> Most (not all, obviously) "younger" people don't look to >>> list-serves for >>> information about music as we did. There's so much out there on >>> the web in >>> blogs and sites like Pitchfork and Stereogum and groupings within >>> social >>> media like Twitter and Facebook. >>> >>> I've found most of my new music from places like Mojo, the UK >>> music >>> magazine and Wears the Trousers, a female-focused music site. >>> >>> I also still get some great suggestions from this list, though I >>> feel like >>> my tastes are rather outliers here. >>> >>> For my tastes, there's no musical drought at all. As far as great >>> new >>> music, I think there's tons of it--maybe more than ever because >>> ofhte >>> possibilties in new media. >>> >>> Right now I'm enjoying the new Unthanks' release, _Last_, Emma >>> McKenna's >>> _Run With It_, Lamb's _5_, tUnE-yArDs' _W H O K I L L _, and >>> exciting news >>> about a new Inga Liljestrom CD just landed in my email inbox. >>> >>> There are a lot of people within the ecto area doing amazing new >>> work, as >>> well as some great retro-flavoured folk rock at a new height. The >>> musical >>> world feels rich to me. >>> >>> --Neile >>> >>> On Thu, 12 May 2011, Peter Clark wrote: >>> >>>> There was a comment in the past few days about the comparative >>>> agedness >>>> of the list members. Since I'm one of the Old Ones I'm curious >>>> as to >>>> whether there's any received wisdom about why this is so. >>>> Observations? Also, there was comment about the apparent fact >>>> that the >>>> list's contents are not being refreshed by either new work or >>>> fresh >>>> talent. I've noticed this myself, though hope springs eternal >>>> and I'm >>>> ever vigilant for contemporary work. Are there any thoughts >>>> about the >>>> comparative drought of the last decade or so? Is this part of >>>> the >>>> observed decline of the music biz even though anyone with a Mac >>>> can >>>> record a CD in their living room? Are we seeing an example of >>>> what >>>> happened to '60s R&B, it just plain ran out of juice in a single >>>> decade? >>>> Just sayin'. >>>> >>>> >>>> >>>> Peter Clark >>>> >>>> -=High Performance Analogue=- >>>> redpoint-audio-design.com ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 13 May 2011 11:56:50 -0400 From: Joseph Zitt Subject: Re: towhomitmayconcern I do have an iPhone and love it. It's my only phone, and I use it for a lot of my email and a multitude of other things. I don't listen to as much music as I once did, mostly because i find it harder to multitask than when I was younger. I can handle one medium of input at a time. If I'm say, writing while listening to music, I effectively don't hear the music. When I want to listen to music, that's the only thing that I can be doing at that time. I work in a book/CD store, so I do run across a lot of music that way. I also follow some recommendations online. But most of my recommendations come from people face-to-face. I do frequent download sites, and my colleagues and I burn a lot of music for each other. It's a truism that the people who download and burn the most music also buy the most music. And most of the music that I've been turned on to of late has been from stuff that I learned through. That said, I'm also as much of a total Gleek as is possible for a guy on his 50s. A lot of my music listening is music from the show, though I've also tracked back some songs that I hadn't known before back to the original versions. On Fri, May 13, 2011 at 6:32 AM, Ella McCrystle wrote: > Hi Peter et al, > > I must make the obligatory nod to how hectic life in general these days is, > and that's probably why I'm with Neile in the "I hate my cell phone. Why > would I want a fancy one?" camp. I think we all get too much email also. (I > do own a nice iPod though, but all the "app" nonsense drives me bonkers.) I > tend to lurk, but I always find time to read, click links & search out > recommendations. While my main taste is pretty purely ecto, I also go to > Sonisphere yearly and traipse around the classical world (where I grew up) > as well as loving pure old rock (Led Zeppelin, Jethro Tull et al.) I do find > that I need to seek out music from trusted sources and often find it through > the net because there just isn't a regular decent radio station where I > live; so that iPod is quite well traveled and owns three different charging > plugs so I can charge it in most countries. I'm over-run at times with a > list of things to buy. I hate buying e-music, but often do. In general I'm > the same as I've always been: perpetually annoyed with the "mainstream" > music business, worried about the quality of music and yet still falling in > love with new stuff pretty regularly. My best way to find new artists is to > stay tuned to emails and concerts from favorite artists. Often they will > recommend great new listens as well as using them to open, etc. On the list > member's age... I am, however, definitely getting older, and that is also > not changing. > > That's my general not-helpful take on your questions. Ella > > ----- Original Message ----- From: "Neile Graham" > To: "ecto" > Sent: Friday, May 13, 2011 1:32 AM > Subject: Re: towhomitmayconcern > > >> If it's any consolation, I don't have an iPhone and am unlikely to get one >> because I'm too cheap to pay the monthly fees. My cell phone costs me >> $100/year and it's rarely turned on and that's about all it's worth to me. I >> have an iPod so I'm not missing out on *that* much. Well, the immediate >> internet access, but I can be patient. >> >> I do look for music samples--I find it fun, and run them when I'm doing >> other things. Like right now I'm running the video link that Sue sent from >> Phantogram. I'm not watching it, though. (Video mostly bores me.) >> >> Does sound interesting, Sue. >> >> Vinyl is making a comeback everywhere. Carina Round is working on >> fundraising to reissue her first album on vinyl, and a lot of artists I love >> like Smoke Fairies do singles. >> >> Unfortunately, the belt on our turntable fell apart and the local retro >> stereo repair store is now empty so we haven't even looked into getting it >> fixed. >> >> I also think a lot of us don't post as much as we used to--I certainly >> don't, though I like to try to remember to tell you all what I'm listening >> to. >> >> --Neile >> >> On May 12, 2011, at 4:16 PM, Peter Clark wrote: >> >>> There were two questions, one about the list and the other about artists. >>> Thanks for answering both. I guess I'm old enough that the apparent >>> glories of the internet are just that: apparent. My six months old iPhone >>> is more of a prop than a phone. I have Pandora and Shazam loaded as apps, >>> period. I'm not interested in using it for anything else than a phone. >>> I'll be happy enough with people thinking I'm hip. >>> >>> Similarly, the net. I was grateful enough to have discovered this list a >>> dozen years ago and still depend on it for new artists, etc., probably more >>> than I should judging from the alternative sources noted by other >>> responders. Looks like I need to up my game. One drawback is that being >>> heavily committed to vinyl as a medium, much/most of the Ecto list is >>> unavailable. I'm rather in Michael's position, dancing as hard as i can >>> just to stay in place and grabbing vinyl versions when I come across them. >>> Alas, the audio business has no collective interest in music remotely Ecto. >>> Seemingly if it's not Golden Age of jazz or 50's classical recording, you >>> can't be serious about software, which of course is patent nonsense, but >>> it's an uphill fight. >>> >>> Thanks for helping me locate my place in the universe. >>> >>> >>> >>> Peter Clark >>> >>> -=High Performance Analogue=- >>> redpoint-audio-design.com >>> >>> >>> On May 12, 2011, at 10:37 AM, neile wrote: >>> >>>> Hi, Peter-- >>>> >>>> I'm not sure whether you're asking about list members or music. >>>> >>>> Most (not all, obviously) "younger" people don't look to list-serves for >>>> information about music as we did. There's so much out there on the web >>>> in >>>> blogs and sites like Pitchfork and Stereogum and groupings within social >>>> media like Twitter and Facebook. >>>> >>>> I've found most of my new music from places like Mojo, the UK music >>>> magazine and Wears the Trousers, a female-focused music site. >>>> >>>> I also still get some great suggestions from this list, though I feel >>>> like >>>> my tastes are rather outliers here. >>>> >>>> For my tastes, there's no musical drought at all. As far as great new >>>> music, I think there's tons of it--maybe more than ever because ofhte >>>> possibilties in new media. >>>> >>>> Right now I'm enjoying the new Unthanks' release, _Last_, Emma McKenna's >>>> _Run With It_, Lamb's _5_, tUnE-yArDs' _W H O K I L L _, and exciting >>>> news >>>> about a new Inga Liljestrom CD just landed in my email inbox. >>>> >>>> There are a lot of people within the ecto area doing amazing new work, >>>> as >>>> well as some great retro-flavoured folk rock at a new height. The >>>> musical >>>> world feels rich to me. >>>> >>>> --Neile >>>> >>>> On Thu, 12 May 2011, Peter Clark wrote: >>>> >>>>> There was a comment in the past few days about the comparative agedness >>>>> of the list members. Since I'm one of the Old Ones I'm curious as to >>>>> whether there's any received wisdom about why this is so. >>>>> Observations? Also, there was comment about the apparent fact that the >>>>> list's contents are not being refreshed by either new work or fresh >>>>> talent. I've noticed this myself, though hope springs eternal and I'm >>>>> ever vigilant for contemporary work. Are there any thoughts about the >>>>> comparative drought of the last decade or so? Is this part of the >>>>> observed decline of the music biz even though anyone with a Mac can >>>>> record a CD in their living room? Are we seeing an example of what >>>>> happened to '60s R&B, it just plain ran out of juice in a single >>>>> decade? >>>>> Just sayin'. >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> >>>>> Peter Clark >>>>> >>>>> -=High Performance Analogue=- >>>>> redpoint-audio-design.com > - -- Joseph Zitt ::http://www.josephzitt.com ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 13 May 2011 12:10:06 -0700 (PDT) From: =?iso-8859-1?Q?anna_maria_stj=E4rnell?= Subject: re:towhomitmayconcern Hi. yes I'm getting older too..but there's so much great music to enjoy now. I still read ecto, and also other sources for info..This year has already seen some great records..and there's more to come. Elysian Fields have and new one now, and there's the great new P.J Harvey one. The Inga Liljestrom one looks very promising too. Havent' got an Iphone but who knows.. Anna ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 14 May 2011 10:51:39 +1000 From: Andrew Fries Subject: Re: towhomitmayconcern On 05/13/2011 03:47 AM, Sue Trowbridge wrote: > On Thu, May 12, 2011 at 10:37 AM, neile wrote: >> >> There are a lot of people within the ecto area doing amazing new work, as >> well as some great retro-flavoured folk rock at a new height. The musical >> world feels rich to me. > > Apropos of that, there was an interesting dialogue in The Onion's AV > Club a couple days ago: > http://www.avclub.com/articles/why-do-popculture-fans-stop-caring-about-new-music,55805/ > "Why do pop-culture fans stop caring about new music as they get older?" I am guilty as charged - these days I don't have a lot of interest in new music. It's not by design though, it just seems to happen that way. But there is a definite pattern, so there must be a reason! It might be partially because as they say towards the end of that article, returning to familiar music is a way of relieving your past in a vivid way. It might be because I don't seem to especially crave discovery and challenge in my music - I am perfectly happy to be comforted! Frankly, I always preferred things that I like naturally rather than things I have to work at liking, if you know what I mean. Maybe now I am just more comfortable admitting that. Another reason is because I don't go out to see live music any more. I don't know whether it is essential to see artist live or not - that might be another discussion - but I do know that for me music was always less about the art as such, and more about the personal connection with the artist. Look at the names that are still very important to me: Kirsty Stegwazi, Abby Dobson, Frente, Paradise Motel, Mercy Bell, Peccadillo... are they more deserving than any other ecto artist? Of course not, even I can see that - they are simply local artists that I happened to know on a more personal level than just playing their CD. Maybe I should then be asking myself why I don't go to seek out live music like I used to - and there are some practical reasons too, but the uncomfortable truth is that I just feel too old to be hanging around the pubs with twenty-somethings. That article does rise an interesting point: why are we happy to stop looking for new music, but we continue to seek out new films or tv shows? It's true, we do that! I'm not satisfied with the answers they offered, but I don't have a better one either. ------------------------------ Date: Fri, 13 May 2011 22:54:29 -0400 From: Joseph Zitt Subject: Re: towhomitmayconcern On Fri, May 13, 2011 at 8:51 PM, Andrew Fries wrote: > That article does rise an interesting point: why are we happy to stop > looking for new music, but we continue to seek out new films or tv shows? > It's true, we do that! I'm not satisfied with the answers they offered, but > I don't have a better one either. > Without having read the article, I can guess that it lies in a fundamental difference between the media. Films and TV are plot-driven. Part of the appeal is not knowing what comes next, then finding it out. Other than the rare film that we want to see again, the case is closed on most since we've seen them once. Music, on the other hand, doesn't have that driving "what comes next?" feature, and doesn't wear out as quickly. We return to hear depths of arrangements, details of sound and emotion, and to rekindle the emotions that we connect with it. (Similarly, the movies and TV episodes to which I return are those that struck particular emotional notes that I want to relive.) I'm probably not being original in thinking of these as horizontal (directional, plot-driven) versus vertical (multi-layered, depth-oriented) media. As a bookseller, I also see this a lot in people's reading and shopping habits. People want to return to books that have literary depth, strike emotional notes, or confirm their senses of how things work. But with the plot-driven books, which seen to be filed primarily by genre (mystery/thriller, science fiction/fantasy, romance), people have no interest at all in books that they've read before, but eagerly await the next books in their favorite series or by their favorite authors. - -- Joseph Zitt ::http://www.josephzitt.com ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 14 May 2011 15:48:04 +1000 From: Andrew Fries Subject: Re: towhomitmayconcern On 05/14/2011 12:54 PM, Joseph Zitt wrote: > Without having read the article, I can guess that it lies in a > fundamental difference between the media. Films and TV are > plot-driven. Part of the appeal is not knowing what comes next, then > finding it out. Other than the rare film that we want to see again, > the case is closed on most since we've seen them once. > > Music, on the other hand, doesn't have that driving "what comes next?" > feature, and doesn't wear out as quickly. We return to hear depths of > arrangements, details of sound and emotion, and to rekindle the > emotions that we connect with it. (Similarly, the movies and TV > episodes to which I return are those that struck particular emotional > notes that I want to relive.) well, when you put it like that... I guess it makes perfect sense :) ------------------------------ End of ecto-digest V16 #102 ***************************